Waluigi the Master Thief 2
by MasterofHearts1313
Summary: Great! Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, and even Wario have all been kidnapped! On top of that, it looks like somebody has formed an organization to take over the world! Looks like Team Waluigi has their work cut out for them.
1. Prologue

Prologue: A Future Threat

Captain Syrup sat on a long couch, flipping through the channels on the television. She cast a sidelong glance to the door that led to the bathroom. "Ashley, does it honestly take you that long to change your clothes?"

"I'm not sure about this. I feel like a Capcom character!"

Captain Syrup rolled her eyes. She stood up and walked up to the door. She smirked as she leaned against the wall. "Oh, come on, Capcom happens to have made a great deal of popular characters."

Ashley opened the door. She was wearing a dress that fit as snugly on her curves as Captain Syrup's, but it billowed out slightly around her legs. A belt of rat skulls and red pearls wrapped around her narrow waist. A pair of bat earrings hung from her ears. She kept her orange, feathery tiara and massive pigtails.

The witch placed her hands on her hips. "Have you even looked in a mirror? Honestly, Maple, if it weren't for our faces and clothes, we'd look the same."

Captain Syrup laughed. "Then I guess it's a good thing we don't have the same face." She winked at Ashley. "Besides, I told you I was going to give you curves, and I gave you curves."

Ashley blushed. "It's just that I'm not used to this."

Captain Syrup shrugged. "And that's why we did it progressively." She cupped Ashley beneath her chin and forced the witch into a locked stare. "Face it, Ashley. You're eighteen. You're a young woman. It's no sin for you to flaunt a little."

Ashley rubbed the back of her head, her blush deepening. "I guess, but it's not like I just grew like most girls."

Captain Syrup let go of Ashley's chin and turned away. "Well, if you're saying that you want me to change you back to how you were when you were fifteen, I suppose I could." She frowned, furrowing her brow. "Except that I already let Denpuu go and have no idea where he went."

Ashley blew at a loose strand of hair. "Good riddance. I never really approved of genie magic."

Captain Syrup walked back to the couch and flopped on it. "Well, what can I say? We're richer than any one person needs to be, we live on a private island, and we're retired. What on earth would I need a genie f-"

A bright flash blasted in the middle of the room.

Captain Syrup sat up and shielded her eyes. "What the heck, Ashley! Did you leave one of your potions out?"

Ashley shook her head, using her arms to completely cover her face. "Why on earth would I make a light-making potion? I can put up with sunlight now, but adding more light to an island is idiotic!"  
The white flash quickly changed to black and swirled into a pillar. It shrunk down into a human shape that was shrouded by a navy-blue cape and had a massive head of blond hair in the shape of a star.

Ashley and Captain Syrup uncovered their eyes and looked at who had decided to intrude upon their apartment. The pirate's jaw dropped, and the witch prepared herself for a fight.

Star-Krossed shook his head before opening his one visible eye. He blinked blankly a couple times. "Where is my grandfather?"

Captain Syrup and Ashley simultaneously raised their eyebrows. "What?"

Star-Krossed separated his giant shadowy hand into two hands and pulled on two of the higher points of his star-shaped hair. "Where is Waluigi? It's urgent!"

---

Waluigi, Alboort, Red, Ashley, and Captain Syrup all sat in couches and armchairs in Waluigi's living room. The whole gang was staring at the strange cosmic being known as Star-Krossed.

Star-Krossed raised his massive shadowy hand to take hold of his chin. "All right. So I have been able to make it in time."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "In time? In time for what?"

Star-Krossed pointed a dark finger at Waluigi. "You and your gang will need to save the world!"

Waluigi shared awkward glances with the other members of his gang of thieves. He turned back to Star-Krossed and shook his head. "Look, Star-Krossed, we're retired here. I think you need to go looking for Mario and Luigi. They do this world saving stuff all the time."

Star-Krossed shook his head. "Mario and Luigi have been kidnapped. That's why you need to save them, and the world."

"Uh-huh." Captain Syrup wove her fingers together and rested her chin on them. "And how would you know this?"

Star-Krossed smiled. "Ah! Of course. I guess it was ridiculous of me to not to remind you that I come from the future."

Alboort adjusted his glasses. "And how did you come to this time, then?"

Star-Krossed's smile grew. "As a Galaxy Eater, I happen to be part black hole. My black hole configuration allows me to transcend time." He winced and made an odd gesture with his hand. "Well, it gets a little tricky to get a specific time, of course, but not impossible."

Red jumped up. "Cool! Can I travel through time with you?"

Star-Krossed laughed. "Only if you don't mind getting squashed to about the size of a period on a written page of text."

Red placed a thoughtful finger on his chin. "Oh. No, no, I wouldn't like that much at all."

Waluigi raised his hands. "Wait. Wait. Wait! If you're from the future, then how can we be sure this kidnapping stuff is going to happen? If we warn the Goody-Two-Shoes Mario Brothers, they could simply avert the disaster." He picked up a remote. "I mean, it's not like this all is happening right now." He pressed the button.

As the television screen sprung to life, a Blue Pianta could be seen sitting at a news desk. "Terrible news, I'm afraid. Recent reports from Peach's Castle have just testified that the world famous heroes, Mario and Luigi, along with Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, and microgame tycoon Wario have all been kidnapped. No evidence has been given except an unusual note that was signed with the stamp of a bat instead of a signature. The Pianta Police Force is making its way to Peach's Castle for further investigation."

Waluigi slapped a hand over his face as he turned off the television. "Okay, so the usual heroes got kidnapped." He uncovered his face and waved his arms frantically. "What does that have to do with us?! Why can't you just get Yoshi or Donkey Kong to go save them? Heck, you probably could even go out into space and find Geno, if you needed to!"

Star-Krossed shook his head and pointed at Waluigi. "You must be the one to go save them, for that is how it has been recorded in history. If someone else were to save Lu... I mean Mario and the others, you could change the entire course of history!"

Waluigi crossed his arms. "Recorded in history? What, are we going to get a movie deal out of this or something?"

Star-Krossed frowned solemnly. "Please, grandfather, this is important to the future. Not just their future, but yours, too."

Ashley sighed. "It has been forever since we had a real job."

Captain Syrup nodded. "I never realized how boring the lap of luxury could get until I was in it."

Alboort looked at Waluigi and pushed up his glasses. "Besides, we could always charge Mario and the others for the labor of saving them."

Waluigi took hold of his chin. "Let's see, fame, increased fortune, and I guess that this whole visit from the future means that we're guaranteed for success." He chewed on his tongue for a moment. "Oh, fine, I guess we'll do it."

"Fantastic!" Star-Krossed turned and rushed towards the door. "Follow me, I know just where Mario is being kept!"

The whole gang jumped to their feet. "Wait! We still need to get packed for the trip!!!"

---

Okay, before anyone comes jumping down my throat, I want to make one thing clear. I can very much see Waluigi as being the sort of character who would break the fourth wall, let alone his entire "franchise". Well, I guess what I mean to say is fifth wall. You see, the fourth wall refers to the characters making reference to their audience, like speaking directly to the screen or something. You know, like when a character acts as though they're trying to interact with the camera and whatnot. The fifth wall usually refers to characters breaching the boundaries of fictional universes. Examples of this would be the Super Smash Bro series, or Pixar using items from different movies as props in other movies. Now, I don't want anyone snarking at me for doing this. If 9-Volt can be a Nintendo fanatic whilst being a Nintendo character, I think I'm allowed the leisure to break the fifth wall a couple of times.

Okay, enough ranting about that. Now, let's actually talk about the first fifth wall joke I used. You see, Capcom switches between partnerships with Playstation and Nintendo. However, the female portrayal often stays constant. As long as they are at least sixteen years old, they can usually fill out a decent-sized bra with no difficulty whatsoever, and they are notoriously hippy. I mean, there's even this this one chick called Chun-Li who, if she wasn't careful, could end up hip-checking an eighteen wheeler off of the highway and over three states. The best examples would be in Street Fighters, Soul Caliber, Darkstalkers, Phoenix Wright, and this lesser known game called Shantae. Of course, because Waluigi is part of the Mario franchise, I don't get a lot of room to say this could be a possible game if I make a lot of risque jokes, even if Waluigi would seem like the type to approve of such jokes. You know, have to keep the E to E 10+ rating, even if I did rate this story T.

Okay, why have Waluigi play the part of an actual protagonist rather than an anti-hero? One, he needs the publicity. Two, because there have been no jobs for Team Waluigi within nearly three years, it is probably safe to assume that Mario and Luigi have been saving the world for a while. So, if the guys who usually save the world are captured, someone needs to save them as well.

Okay, enough with the author's notes right now before I get too crazy.

Please enjoy and review.


	2. Chapter 1 Part 1

Chapter 1.1: Welcome to Subcon!

Waluigi's van bumped over the road as it landed on a strangely orange road.

Waluigi looked out of the windshield and blinked several times. "Where the heck are we! I mean, the mountains might have eyes in Mushroom Kingdom, but this place just looks ridiculous."

Alboort shifted from the window to his laptop. His hands blurred as he tapped keys. "If I'm not mistaken, I believe we're in..." he raised an eyebrow, "Subcon?"

Waluigi paused. "Subcon? What the heck is Subcon?"

Alboort adjusted his glasses. "Well, if my research is correct, Subcon should be the land of dreams."

Waluigi stomped on the brakes. After shifting the gear into park, he turned and stared at the Boo. "How in blazes did we get into Dreamland?"

Alboort shook his head. "Not Dreamland. Subcon."

"Whatever! How did we get here?"

Star-Krossed, sitting in the passenger seat, cleared his throat. "That would be my doing, grandfather. I've been able to transfer us into the land of the subconscious."

Waluigi turned to the cosmic being. "Why are we here?"

"This is where Mario has been transferred for his captivity." Star-Krossed swallowed his arm back beneath his cloak. "I have to say, it's pretty clever. Not many to just come to this location."  
Waluigi started driving again. "By the way, what's up with Ashley and Captain Syrup? They haven't said a single thing since we got here."

Alboort looked towards the back of the enlarged van. "They're asleep. I guess the ride was a little longer than anticipated."

Waluigi nodded. "Speaking of sleep, where are we going to stay for a hideout? I don't see any buildings." He rolled down the window and pointed out of it. "At least, no buildings besides that giant castle."

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Well, I guess we'll have to use the van as a hideout for now." He tapped a few more keys. "But that's not your concern right now. You need to pull off some reconnaissance before it gets dark."

Waluigi groaned and rolled his eyes. "It's been so long, I forgot all about that." He pulled the van over. "Well, better now than never, I guess."

---

Waluigi jumped out of the van and took a few steps away. He pulled out his Thieftech and flipped it open. "Wow. It's been forever since I used this thing."

Alboort nodded. "You certainly have been out of the field for a while, so how about we recap on your abilities?"

Waluigi nodded. "Not a bad idea."

Alboort tapped a few keys. "All right, so let's start with a few stealth basics. Like your triple jump."  
Waluigi laughed. "Come on, I know I haven't been out of the field for a while, but I think I can remember something as simple as jumping. All I do is press the A button up to three times to jump higher than the average person."

Alboort smiled. "All right, if you know so much about jumping, then let's see you jump on top of that sheer cliff right next to us."

Waluigi looked up at the rocky wall. "Okay." I'll see what I can do." He flipped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. He bent his knees before jumping up. While in the air, he flexed his legs to boost him higher, and again to bounce himself to the top of the cliff. Once he had a firm footing, he pulled his Thieftech. "How's that?"

Alboort tapped a few keys. "Well, there's more than just jumping. If you hold the A button down after jumping, you can swim through the air to glide over long distances, like to the other side of this valley."

Waluigi shielded his eyes as he looked over at the other cliff. "That shouldn't be too hard."

Alboort raised an eyebrow. "Then let's see it."

Waluigi span his Thieftech around before shutting it. He triple jumped into the air before stretching his arms out in front of him. With a few wide swings, he was able to fly his way over to just above the ledge and planted his feet down. He swung his Thieftech open and held it near his face. "Well, that wasn't too bad."

"But it doesn't look like you were able to make it to the top of the cliff." Alboort frowned. "Oh well, I guess these cliffs were a little too far apart to expect you to have made it."

Waluigi looked up at the cliff. "Now that I'm actually standing against it, I can see that this cliff is taller than that other one."

Alboort shrugged, clicking his mouse a couple times. "Then I guess that brings us to the next lesson, climbing. You can use the C button to grab onto ledges after jumping."

Waluigi looked up. "Yeah, I guess there are plenty of ledges on this cliff. That other one as too smooth."

Alboort nodded. "Then let's see you climb up. Call me when you reach the top."

Waluigi nodded, shutting his Thieftech and pocketing it. He jumped up a couple times before grabbing a ledge. He was able to jump from there to another ledge and up and up until he was able to land smoothly on the top. He pulled his Thieftech out and snapped it open. "Okay, this is nice and all, but I think I'm going the opposite direction from the castle, and wouldn't that be where Mario is being kept?"

Alboort nodded. "True. I guess that this isn't really all that productive." He tapped a few keys. "Well, it shouldn't be too bad for you to make your way to the castle. Just as a note, though, if you want to sneak around, you can use the C button to interact with more things than just ledges. You can climb poles, hide behind trees, and interact with buttons and such. Also, if you want to get there more quickly by shaking the Wii remote to run."

Waluigi nodded. He flipped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. He jumped down from the cliff, gliding the last short distance. He turned around and ran down the path. It wasn't long before he was on;y a short distance away from the castle. He pulled out his vibrating Thieftech and flipped it open. "What is it, Alboort?"

Alboort adjusted his glasses. "Well, it's just that there might be guards. Ninjis and Tweeters to be specific."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "And what do you want me to do about them?"

Alboort tapped several keys. "Well, my satellite isn't showing any tweeters being out and about right now, so we won't worry about them. For the Ninjis, though, a few strong kicks should be enough to take them out. Press the B button for a simple kick, or the Z button for a Juggle Kick. You can Juggle Kick an opponent multiple times to keep them in the air, but it isn't nearly as the as your normal kick."  
Waluigi nodded. "Okay, so kick the Ninjis out of my way as I run up to the castle. Is that all?"

Alboort gazed at his computer screen. "Well, if you would prefer to avoid a direct battle, you can sneak up on an enemy and use a Heel Slam attack. All you do is sneak up behind someone, then press the Z button to launch them in the air and the B button to slam the airborne enemy into the ground. For another combo, you can press the A button to jump into the air, and follow it up with the B button for an Earthquake Stomp. Not only can it send most enemies into an unstable daze, but you can also pound enemies on top of their heads to stick them into the ground. This should give you time to escape, in case the battle gets too wild. Trust me, it's better to run than to die."

Waluigi scowled. "You think I don't know that! If it weren't for the fact that the Black Hole Kid could kill me by sucking me into that hand of his, do you really think I'd go about stretching my neck out for Mario?"

Alboort shrugged. "Well, there's no use in complaining. Might as well get inside the castle to see what you can find."

Waluigi rolled his eyes as he shut his Thieftech. He pocketed the device and made his way around the hill. Not feeling all that patient, he ran his way across the field. A few cat-like creatures ran towards him, but he was able to at least kick them out of the way, if not into submission. As he approached the castle, he jumped up and grabbed onto an extended brick. He performed a double jump and grabbed onto another loose brick. With a few more jumps and bricks, he was able to make it to the top of the castle. No guards were present, and the top of the castle looked pretty empty, with the exception of a chimney.

Waluigi scratched his chin. "Let's see, I can interact with something by pressing the C button." He ran over to the chimney. "I wonder if I can fit down here." He jumped up and used his thin body to slide down the metal chute."

---

Waluigi soon found himself in the ventilation system. Or more specifically, the ventilation in the wall of the throne room. He pulled his Thieftech out of his pocket and flipped it open. "Okay, Alboort, I'm in."  
Alboort tapped several keys. "Well, that was faster than I expected." He adjusted his glasses, scrolling through his computer screen. "Okay, well, it's been a while since you've used the camera feature on the Thieftech, so let me explain how it works real quick."

Waluigi scowled. "Alboort, I know how to use my own gear. I press the 1 button to bring up the Thieftech. From there, I can use the control stick to aim, the B button to zoom in, the Z button to zoom out, and either the A or C button to take a picture."

Alboort raised an eyebrow. "Okay. Well, I guess I'm glad to see retirement hasn't made you too rusty." He tapped a few keys. "All right, then. I'll need you to take a picture of Wart, Mouser, the Nightmare Machine, and Mario. We'll need to know about all of them, if we are to save Mario."

"Okay, that should be easy enough." Waluigi turned Alboort off and fastened his Thieftech over his ear and eye. He zoomed the lens around the room until he found a weird machine that looked like a calliope. Raising an eyebrow, he clicked the picture button.

Alboort appeared on the screen. "Well, I believe this is the Nightmare Machine."

"Nightmare Machine?" Waluigi looked between the massive device and the Boo. "That's the goofiest looking thing I've ever seen!"

Alboort tapped several keys. "Well, its looks are... unconventional, but the Nightmare Machine can create monsters with just the flip of a switch."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "I can't believe it. How could something as ridiculous-looking as that make monsters?"

Alboort gaped for a moment. "I have no idea! If you think the outside looks ridiculous, you should see the inside! I've never seen such ridiculous circuitry in my life."

Waluigi waved his hand flippantly. "All right, I'll just look for the rest of these guys, then." He switched back to camera mode and looked around the room. Not too far from the Nightmare Machine was a fat frog-like creature sitting on a throne. Waluigi snapped another picture."

Alboort reappeared on the screen. "Now this is the great Wart."

"Well, I'll admit that he's a little scary. He has those vicious teeth." Waluigi rubbed his chin. "What exactly is he?"

"I'm unsure." Alboort tapped several keys. "Well, he is reputedly Bowser's brother, but he looks more amphibious than reptilian."

"Bowser's brother?" Waluigi looked at Wart. "Well, I guess that would explain why they're both kings. Is there really anything scary about this guy, though?"

"Well, aside from being the only one who can operate the Nightmare Machine, he attacks his enemies with bubbles."

"Bubbles?" Waluigi rolled his eyes. "Ri-ight. And this guy is scary... why?"

Alboort shrugged. "Ask Star-Krossed. He's the one who knows about all the kidnappings. I'm not even sure if Wart was the one to kidnap Mario. According to most sources, Wart has never been seen outside of Subcon."

"Say, speaking of Mario, I haven't seen him in here."  
Alboort scratched his chin. "Well, how about you keep looking. You haven't found Mouser yet, either."

"I guess that's true." Waluigi returned to camera mode and looked around. He scoured most of the room before he saw a giant mouse standing in front of the doors. He snapped the rat's photo."

Alboort returned to the screen. "Okay, Mouser might look rather comical with his oversized sunglasses, but don't lower your guard. He's probably the most dangerous creature in Subcon."

Waluigi snickered. "More dangerous than bubbles and calliope music?"

"I'm serious!" Alboort tapped several keys. "Mouser is one of the most famous bombers in the world. Not only that, but Mario has stated that he's one of the toughest opponents he's ever had."

Waluigi nodded. "Again, I'm confused about where Mario is. I've looked through this whole room, and I haven't seen a trace of him."

Alboort bit his lip. "Well, that's disconcerting." He clicked on his mouse. "Anyways, come back to the van. I'll try to figure something out, and we'll go from there."

Waluigi nodded. "All right. I'll be right there." He flipped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. Looking up, he began climbing up the thing chimney.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Waluigi_

---

Okay, for those who only just joined us in the Waluigi the Master Thief series now (shame on you for not reading the first), then I'll have to tell you that this story is based on gameplay as though it were an actual game. I hope this doesn't turn anyone off concerning the story. I'll explain more controls later.

Anyways, let me explain why I chose Wart as the first boss. You see, he hasn't made a truly notable appearance after Super Mario Bro. 2. Also, as one of the more intimidating underused villains, I think that the dragonic toad could use a little more spotlight. Let's not forget that Mouser is renowned as one of the toughest minibosses in Mario history.

Well, I don't have have any more notes for now.

Please, enjoy and review.


	3. Chapter 1 Part 2

Chapter 1.2: Alternate Worlds

Waluigi, Red, Ashley, Captain Syrup, and Star-Krossed all sat in the back of the van as Alboort messed with his projector.

Waluigi snickered. "It's been too long since I've sat through one of these."

Ashley shrugged. "It's not like you can really miss them, though."

Alboort floated towards the screen. "Okay, okay. It's been a while, so I hope this thing still works." He held up his projector button and clicked it. However, instead of a picture, a giant question mark appeared on the screen. "Now, it troubles me to say this, but Mario, who, according to Star-Krossed, is the victim trapped here in Subcon, is missing in action, and there are no obvious clues as to where he is." He pushed up his glasses. "Now, Wart doesn't have any more common sense than Bowser, as far as I can tell, but he prides himself on being clever, so I can guess that he's probably hidden Mario somewhere out of the way."

"Out of the way?" Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "I mean, there are cliffs and all, but there's not much as far as nooks and crannies go. Where exactly would out of the way be?"

Alboort nodded. "I admit, it must sound rather odd, but there is more to Subcon than meets the eye. Research shows that there are actually some plants which produce potions that create portals to an alternate dimensions-"

Captain Syrup held up a halting hand. "Hold on a minute! I know my science, and plants do not just turn into potions. And if we're already in another dimension, how on earth could there be an alternate dimension? Let alone dimensions? Wouldn't that mean it'd just lead back to our own world?"

Alboort shook his head. "You have to realize that Subcon is a sort of Dreamland. Things don't need to stay true to scientific fact." He cleared his throat. "But let me explain. I didn't mean alternate dimensions, but rather, pockets within an alternate dimension."

Red jumped up. "Oh boy! Can I go to the alternate dimension, Alboort? Can I?"

Alboort smirked as he pushed up his glasses. "Actually, I think Star-Krossed is better suited to this sort of job. As he is supposedly part black hole, he could very likely escape these alternate dimensions."

Waluigi waved his hand flippantly. "Wait! Judging from how fat that toad was, I doubt he'd take the time to actually hunt down these plants."

Alboort nodded. "A good point. That's why you'll be going up into the sky later to check it out up there."

"The sky!?" Waluigi's eyes grew quite wide as he began to gesture frantically. "How is a toad that fat supposed to make it up into the sky? How am I supposed to even get up into the sky."

Alboort held his hands up defensively. "Calm down, Waluigi. Subcon is a weird place. In fact, nearly twenty five percent of the ground is up in the air."

Everyone but Star-Krossed gave the Boo a questioningly look.

Alboort sighed, palming his face. "I'll explain it later when I actually send Waluigi up there, okay?" He uncovered his face and tapped the projector button against the back of his hand. "If nothing else, we could always blow this place to Kingdom Come, but I'll need some serious fireworks." He turned to Ashley. "I'll need you and red to go out a little later to collect some ingredients for me."

Ashley nodded curtly. "Very well."

Captain Syrup jumped up. "Hold up! Star-Krossed get a job, and I don't."

"You'll be on standby, Captain Syrup." Alboort tugged on his bowtie, smiling wryly. "Hopefully, we'll find Mario and can get the heck out of here without having to beat everyone to a pulp."

Star-Krossed bowed his head. "I will begin my excursion shortly."

---

Star-Krossed stepped out of the side of the van. Instead of pulling out a Thieftech, the red star shape around his right eye began to glow.

Alboort appeared inside the visible eye's vision. "Okay, this is going to need some getting used to."

Star-Krossed shrugged. "Well, I can't say that I've talked to a lot of people like this, mostly because I didn't have a need to, so you could say both of us are going to have to get used to this."

Alboort nodded. "Yes, I suppose that is true. Speaking of your unique tricks, I'm afraid I have never really seen you in action before, and the fact that you're from the future means that I can't research any of them."

"Indeed." Star-Krossed walked away from the van. "Well, unlike the rest of you, I'm afraid that I can't even sneak while I'm just walking, so it doesn't really matter if I shake the Wii remote to run or not."

"Um, that's not really an ability." Alboort pushed up his glasses. "Actually, if anything, that's more of a disability."

Star-Krossed furrowed his brow. "Well, another disability, then, would be the fact that I'm too heavy to perform a double jump. Yes, I can jump the first time, but not the second time."

Alboort frowned. "How about an actual ability. We're not going to get anywhere if the only thing you can claim is being athletically challenged."

"Ah, you mean like an attack ability." Star-Krossed quirked an eyebrow. "If you want something direct, by pressing the B button, I can use my Black Claws attack. Not only does it have a decent range for a melee attack, it's pretty darn powerful to boot."

"Well, I'm going to have to see it to believe it." Alboort tapped several keys, and a robot jumped out of the side of the van. "Here's a Trainer-Bot. Let's see if you can take him on."

Star-Krossed blinked and shook his head, deactivating his red star. He turned to face the machine and slashed it apart in only two strokes of his massive shadowy hand. He paused and let his red star begin to glow again. "Was that acceptable?"

"Yeah. That's pretty good." Alboort pushed up his glasses. "Is that all, though. I mean, you're going to need some real skills other than just attacks, like attacks with special effects."

"Well, by pressing the Z button, I can use Star Bolt." Star-Krossed cringed. "It's not particularly strong, and it takes a few seconds to start up, but it has a sniper's range, and I can continue to use it as long as the Z button is held down."

"Hmm." Alboort shook his head. "How about something that can bring stuff out of the ground, you have to realize that you'll need to pick plants on this mission."

"Oh, of course." Star-Krossed laughed. "I can just use Gravity surge. I press the A button to jump, and then, by pressing the B button, I can slam my hand against the ground, intensifying the gravity within a shot-ranged localized area. Not only can it pluck vegetables out of the ground, but it stuns all surrounding enemies, even if it doesn't do any damage."

Alboort smiled. "All right. That's what I'm talking about." He tapped a few keys. "Okay, according to my computer, there should be three Portal Plants in the area. Of course, I'm sure that there are an ample amount of enemies around those areas, especially if Mario happens to be kept inside one of them. Don't forget to use your Starry Eye technique to check around for Destination Points."

Star-Krossed nodded. He looked around until he saw a glowing star shape in the air. He blinked to return his eye to normal and rushed in that direction. As he approached the area, he saw several Ninjis hopping around. When he was close enough, he slashed his hand around all of them were knocked out. He looked around to check that he was the only one there. When he was sure, he jumped up and smashed his hand into the ground, uprooting the surrounding plants.

Star-Krossed looked at the different vegetables. His red star began to glow again. "Um, okay, Alboort, what did the Portal Plant look like again?"

"It shouldn't be that difficult to locate, it should look like a bottled potion." Alboort tapped several keys. "You need to press the C button to activate it. Be sure to check around the area for Mario. The pockets should be small, so it shouldn't be that hard to find him if he's in there."

Star-Krossed nodded. "I'll call if I find anything." He twisted his head and got rid of his eye's glow. He walked over and tapped the potion. It immediately popped into a door. After examining it closely, the cosmic being twisted the knob and entered.

The area inside the door had its colors inverted. Star-Krossed walked around inside it to find that the limits of the pocket were smaller than he thought. There weren't even any hills or raised he land. He jumped up and performed a Gravity Surge.

Star-Krossed looked around, still seeing nothing. He paused and let his red star glow. "Um, Alboort, there's nothing in here. And I mean nothing."

Alboort frowned. "Well, that's a little unnerving, but there's still two more Portal Potions left, so you should check them out, too."

"All right. Say, before I get out of here, I should probably tell you that I can go faster by using my warp jump technique. All I have to do is jump and press the Z button. It doesn't give any height, but it lets me zoom forward a fair distance."

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Well, I suppose that is handy, but I don't really care at this point. We need you to find Mario. The sooner you find him, the sooner we can get out of here and avoid a fight with Wart."

"Yes, the sooner we can get out of here." Star-Krossed nodded seriously. He snapped out of his trance and turned to the door. He walked over and walked through the door. He used his Starry Eye to look for his next target. As soon as he had found the Destination Point, he rushed over. He Warp Jumped several times, getting him there in no time flat. However, he paid for it by getting attacked several times. He took them all out with a couple of savage Black Claw attacks.

As soon as the field was clear, the cosmic being walked over and performed a Gravity Surge. He quickly found the potion and flipped it open into a door. He looked around to see that there was again nothing. However, he did notice that there was a ridge. He walked over and looked around, but there was still nothing. He reverted to Starry Eye mode. "Well, Alboort, there's no Mario here, either."

Alboort tugged on his bowtie. "Well, that's not too bad. I mean, you still have one door left to check."

"I guess so." Star-Krossed gently stroked his side. "But my condition isn't the best, though." He paused and snapped his fingers. "Oh, that reminds me, I have an Absorption technique that allows me to grab anything, from a rock to an enemy, to restore my health."

Alboort tapped several keys. "That should be good to clear away the last area." He clasped his hands together and sighed.. "Oh please let Mario be there."

Star-Krossed nodded briefly. He released himself from the Starry Eye condition and walked to the door. Once he was outside, he used his Starry Eye to locate his final destination. He snapped himself out of the condition and ran in that direction.

Star-Krossed had to jump up several mounds until he was on top of a mountain. There were only three Ninjis guarding this area. He shot out his hand and grabbed the middle one, pulling it into his core. Stars surrounded him as he blasted the last two off the side with his Star Bolt attack. He walked towards the middle of the mountain's peak and performed a Gravity Surge. He found the potion and used it to open the third door.

Inside this alternate space pocket, Star-Krossed found he could jump down the mountain. He walked around it and hopped his way up the mounds again. Finding nothing, he went into Starry Eye mode. "I'm sorry, Alboort, but Mario doesn't seem to be here, either."

Alboort frowned, slamming his head into his desk. "Well, that's not good. That's not good at all. That means all we did waste time today."

Star-Krossed shrugged. "I'm sorry I couldn't serve you better. At least you got to know me better, right?"

Alboort sat up and adjusted his glasses. "I guess so." He sighed. "Look, just come back to the van. It's risky to let more than one member out at a time."

Star-Krossed nodded. He shook his head to get rid of Starry Eye mode and walked out of the door.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Star-Krossed_

---

Well, there are the skills of Star-Crossed, the new guy. I'm not really sure how often I'll actually use him, but it should be at least once a level. Primarily, it's a little tough to make a cosmic being fit in a, earthbound situation. I'm just glad I didn't resort into making him some obnoxious Martian stereotype.

Anyways, we still haven't found Mario, not even his hat. Could he be in the sky? Will Captain Syrup get to do anything? Will Team Waluigi have to face the deadly wrath of bubbles? Stay tuned and find out.

Please, enjoy and review.


	4. Chapter 1 Part 3

Chapter 1.3: Hot Foot

Ashley stepped out of the van. She turned around and gestured to Red.

Red hopped to the edge of the van. "Man, it's been a while since I've done this."

Ashley rolled her eyes. "Just hurry up."

Red jumped into the air and turned into a short golden scepter with a giant ruby on it. He landed snugly into Ashley's hand.

Ashley nodded curtly. She pulled a red Thieftech out of her pocket and flipped it open. "All right, Alboort, what am I out here for?"

Alboort bit his lip. "Right. I forgot how moody you get when you have to go out into the field."

Ashley huffed. One of her eyebrows rose as the other angled sharply towards her nose.

Alboort laughed nervously. "Okay. Okay. I don't want to end up as a potion ingredient." He tapped several keys. "Speaking of potion ingredients, you remember when we tried to use Large Fry's gastric acid to improve my bombs' power."

Ashley snickered. "Too bad for you that it was a little more combustible than any other explosive ingredient you had used before."

Alboort frowned. "Ha ha. Very funny. Just because you could actually outrun the explosion." He took a deep breath. "Anyways, I guess I should have expected it since bombs were the only substance that never seemed o agree with him."

"You were black for a week." Ashley gave a small smile as she crossed her arms. "I probably would have suggested that you bring Large Fry, if I knew that you were planning to go crazy with the bombs." She shrugged. "But I guess he got a little bigger than travel size."

"And whose fault is that? You were the one who was supposed to watch him."

Ashley frowned, and her brow pinched tight. "Excuse me, are you interested in doing all the cooking?" She flipped her hair. "Now, how about we quit talking about home and talk about what we're doing here."

"Right. Good idea." Alboort tapped several keys quickly. "Well, we're going to try to get a different ingredient to increase the power of my gun powder."

Ashley quirked an eyebrow. "Well, now you're speaking my language."

Alboort pushed his glasses sup. "Yes, but before we get too far into that, let's discuss your abilities in the field."

Ashley crossed her arms and huffed. "Is it really that difficult? I press the A button to perform a jump, and then again for a double jump. After jumping, I can hold the A button down in oreder to glide on my broom. I shake the Wii remote to run. By pressing the C button, I can interact with various items, including plants and magic crystals. I can shoot giant magic blasts by pressing the B button. And by pressing the Z button, I can-"

"Turn enemies into toads." Alboort shook his head. "Sheesh, I know you've done this before, but you don't have to shoot out the description like we didn't have any time at all."

Ashley cleared her throat. "Actually, I got rid of the toad technique. Now, when I press the Z button, I can charge up an ice attack that will freeze an enemy in place, if it hits."

"Oh." Alboort scratched the side of his head. "Well, I wasn't expecting a change like that."

Ashley pulled out a small brown paper package. "And let's not forget the Portable Potion Pack. I can press the 2 button to throw it, and any enemy that gets caught in the trap becomes an ingredient to complete the potion and create a health restorative."

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Well, that's great and all, but that's not really what we need. Can you still pick things up?"

"Oh, that trick." Ashley span her scepter in her hands. "Well, it's been a while, but if I remember correctly, I just press the C button to pick up an object. From there, I can move around with the object. I can press the B button to throw it, or the C button to set it down again."

Alboort nodded. "Good. Good." He clicked on his mouse. "Now, here in Subcon are plants that are so explosive that their roots even take the form of bombs. I want to use their powdered form to increase the power of my bombs."

Ashley placed one of her hands on her hip. "I'm guessing the roots of these plants must be pretty large, or else you wouldn't have me be the one to do this."

Alboort tapped several keys. "Well, I'm setting up Destination Points. Don't forget to press the 1 button to look through your Thieftech."

Ashley waved her hand flippantly. "Yeah. Yeah. I get it. Follow the Destination Points, grab the bombs, and run back to the van with them."

"Not so fast!" Alboort tapped keys furiously. "Now, Waluigi will be waiting for you to use Earthquake Stomp to shoot the vegetables out of the ground. You can attack any enemies on the way over, but you have to let Waluigi take care of them after you grab the bomb. I know it must be difficult for someone with your disposition, but it's essential. The bomb-like roots are stable under the ground, but they are highly unstable when removed. In fact, you'll only have a limited time to get it back ot the van for me to repair the instability."

Ashley rolled her eyes. "Great, you're sending me on a suicide mission."

Alboort huffed. "I am not! The bombs are not very far away from the van, and as long as you don't decide to just throw the bomb or stop to tie your shoe, you should be fine."

"Okay. Now, you can shut up and let me work, right?"

Alboort sighed. "We need five bombs in all, but, yes, you can get to you job now."

Ashley pressed the button to turn Alboort off and to placed it over her eye. After seeing a beacon in the shape of her head, she flipped her Thieftech shut and pocketed it. She ran in the general direction of where the beacon had been floating.

For fun, Ashley took some time to blast a few Ninjis as she walked along. However, it didn't take her long before she found Waluigi standing in the middle of a patch of weeds.

Waluigi looked up at Ashley. "Okay, Ash, you ready for the bomb?"

Ashley nodded, keeping her gaze to the side, hoping that would hide the slight blush on her cheeks.

With a high jump, Waluigi plunged his foot towards the ground, causing shockwaves to shoot out, and plants to shoot up.

Ashley was slightly jostled by the shockwaves, but she caught her footing quickly. It didn't take her long to recognize the large bomb-shaped plant, and she pointed her scepter towards it. As it glowed, the massive black plant floated up in the air."

Waluigi ran up beside the witch. "Alboort said I should escort you back to the van, in case any loser monsters try to attack you." He looked back at the bomb. "He also said we should hurry back, or else that thing's going to blow."

Ashley tried her best to hide her face. Much to her embarrassment, even after living on the same island with him for three years, she still couldn't get close to him without blushing. For someone with as serious a demeanor as herself, she thought it was simply nothing short of pathetic.

"Um, Ashley." Waluigi tapped her on the shoulder. "The bomb!"

Ashley blinked herself out of her daze and looked at the bomb.  
Waluigi began running. "I guess it's a good thing we aren't that far from the van, huh?"

Ashley nodded as she turned and ran with the bomb. It didn't take her long to see the van. When she was close enough, she dropped the root and turned away, planning on letting Alboort take care of it.

Instead of using her Thieftech, Ashley followed Waluigi to the next patch of grass. She blasted a pair of Ninjis as she ran by, hoping the spent time would build a safe amount of distance between her and Waluigi.

As Ashley approached the grassy area, Waluigi gave a brief nod. He jumped up and and Earthquake Stomped, letting the plants pop up again.

Ashley caught the bomb before it even hit the ground. She turned and ran back to the van without even thinking. She deposited it just as Alboort came out of the van.

Ashley had to use her Thieftech to track where Waluigi had gone, but it didn't take her long to find it. As with the last one, she waited for the bomb to pop up, grabbed it with a beam from her scepter, and ran back to the van with it, leaving the explosive plant for the Boo to deal with.

The fourth bomb was also pretty easy. Sure, Ashley had to dodge a few Ninji attacks, but Waluigi swept most of them out of the way for her.

After the fourth bomb had been given to Alboort, Waluigi stopped Ashley and turned her to face him. "Hold on a minute, Ash."

"What is it, Waluigi?" Ashley brushed a few loose strands of hair to the side. She shook her scepter as she heard Red snickering.

Waluigi held up a knowing finger. "Well, this last bomb is a bit farther than the rest of them, and I'm sure that word will have gone around that someone's collecting bombs." Waluigi stooped down, so he was eye level with the witch. "Now, friend of foe, collecting bombs looks suspicious, so there will probably be a good number of guards. Whatever you do, just leave them to me. Run back to the van as soon as possible. I'm sure I can outrun these stupid little rat-cat things."

Ashley's eyes grew wide. "What?"

"I'll be fine." Waluigi snickered. "It's not like we're going to get it from Mouser or something, so there's no problem with it, right?" He ran forward. "Come on!"  
Ashley didn't say a word as she ran after Waluigi. She did take note, however, that this bomb was nearly three times as far away as the others,

Just as Waluigi had warned, there was a fair crowd of Ninjis sitting around the patch of grass. They charged at the tall man, but Waluigi pulled out his tennis racket and began swatting the petite monsters to and fro. When a brief clearing appeared, he jumped up and stomped the ground.

After the plants had popped up, Ashley didn't looked between the bomb and the out-of-range van. She whirled her scepter and sent a blue blast at the plant, coating it in ice. After making sure the bomb was frozen, she pointed her scepter at it and picked it up.

The witch turned and ran back towards the van. She did just as Waluigi and Alboort had told her and ran, ignoring everything else. However, the bomb had completely defrosted about halfway back to the van. It didn't take much longer for the bomb to start glowing red.

As soon as the bomb came near the van, Alboort hopped out and placed a device on the side that stopped the bomb from glowing. He turned to Ashley and nodded. "This should be sufficient enough to power up my bombs, if the case may be that we need it later."

Waluigi ran up beside Ashley, panting. "Yeah? Well, we better not be sending nukes in to do a job Bomb-ombs could do."

Alboort shook his head. "No, it shouldn't be near that bad. All I'll need to do is crush these roots up and mix them effectively with my gun powder." He pushed his glasses up. "By the way, Waluigi, you have a job, now. You better get to it."

Waluigi sighed. "After a breather, Alboort." He leaned on Ashley's shoulder.

Ashley blushed as she helped lead Waluigi inside the van.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Ashley and Red_

---

In case people don't remember, Ashley captured Large Fry while Waluigi and the gang were working on the Shake King's ship. I thought I'd try to make a few connections between the first and second Waluigi the Master Thief, just so that it is evident that the two are in a series.

Anyways, I apologize if this story doesn't have the same 'pop' as the last one. It was a little difficult to think up jobs. Of course, they are still sensible and logical, and should be fun after some fashion. I'm trying my best, really.

BTW, I'm pretty sure people wonder why I have Waluigi call Ashley 'Ash' all the time. That's because in the Japanese version, Waluigi, being older, would very likely you a childish affectation like Ash-chan whenever he intended to call her by name. To make it easier to understand, Waluigi just doesn't strike me as a formal person.

Please, enjoy and review.


	5. Chapter 1 Part 4

Chapter 1.4: Flying High

Waluigi hopped out of the side of the van. He pulled out his Thieftech and flipped it open. "Okay, Alboort, what am I out here for again?"

Alboort tapped a couple of keys. "Well, seeing how Star-Krossed didn't find Mario in any of the alternate dimension pockets, it looks like you will need to look for him in the sky."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "Hold on a minute. Why don't you just look for Mario with your satellite?"

Alboort shrugged. "I already tried. Unfortunately, I can't get a picture with any sort of quality here in Subcon."

Waluigi groaned. "And how am I supposed to get into the sky?" He brightened. "I mean, I could hop into the van and turn it into a jet."

Alboort shook his head. "That would be too fast, and there's a risk of critically injuring Mario if we ran into him." He tapped several keys. "Okay, I marked the location of a tall vine with a Destination Point. I'll give you further instruction there."

"Fine." Waluigi placed his Thieftech over his eye and looked around in the sky. When he saw a mark similar to his face, he snapped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. He ran in the direction where the marker had been.

After jumping up a couple of sheer hills and beating up a few Ninjis, Waluigi found himself at the base of a vine. He pulled his Thieftech out and flipped it open. "Okay, Alboort, what do you want me to do here?"

Alboort raised an eyebrow. "Is it really that hard to figure out? I want you to climb up."

Waluigi shrugged. "Well, it's not that difficult, sure. In fact, I bet all I have to do is jump and press the C button to grab hold of it and-" He froze. "Hold on a minute! You can't seriously be telling me you expect me to walk around on clouds!"

Alboort shot his hands up defensively. "Calm down! Calm down!" He tapped several keys. "You have to remember that Subcon is a dream world. Mario and Luigi were able to walk around on the clouds before you, so you should be able to walk around up there just as easily."

Waluigi stroked his chin. "Well, I guess that makes sense."

Alboort nodded and clicked on his mouse. "This is the only vine in this area, but there are three dungeon-like areas up there. And I doubt that they're going to be empty. And I definitely don't think it will be easy to travel between clouds. If you find a cloud that might be a little too high for your triple jump, you can use Whirl-Luigi by pressing the Z button while you're in the air. By spinning around rapidly, you not only get to deal some severe damage to airborne enemies, but you get an extra boost in height and distance for your jumps."

"And in case a battle gets too serious, I can use a gadget by equipping it on the item menu and pressing the 2 button." Waluigi rolled his eyes. "Honestly, Alboort, I might have been out of the game for about three years, but I know my own skills."

Alboort sighed. "Okay. Sorry. I didn't mean to offend you." He tapped several keys. "Now, hurry up and get up there. You'll find Destination Points that will lead you to the three sky dungeons. Find them, get to them quickly, and find Mario. If he's up there, we can get out of here."

"All right, I got it." Waluigi paused, his eyes growing wide. Wait! 'If'? You mean, that he might not even be up there!?"

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Calm down, Waluigi. It's a hypothesis. Besides, I'm not really sure where else Wart could keep Mario."

Waluigi scowled. "Fine. I'll call you as soon as I get to the first sky dungeon thing." He flipped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. Looking up the vine, he jumped up and grabbed onto it. He continued to shimmy his way up into the clouds.

At the top of the vine, Waluigi was hesitant, especially when he looked down at the distance between himself and the ground, but he was able to get himself to jump onto the cloud fluff. Much to his surprise, and relief, he found that the cloud completely supported his weight. On the more hostile hand, however, he found that several Tweeters also happened to be sitting on that cloud. It took him a few Whirl-Luigis and a couple well-placed cracks from his bat, but the bird-like creatures proved to be very little trouble.

With the cloud clear, Waluigi pulled out his Thieftech and placed it over his eye. After looking around for a moment, he found a single Destination Point. Fortunately, it was signaling for an area that was at the top of a set of stairs made out of clouds.

After Waluigi put his Thieftech away, he ran over to the base of the cloud stairs. The first cloud was certainly low enough for just a double jump, and the ascent for the rest of the clouds looked even lower. The stairs also went straight up. No curves. No twists or bends. Not even a hopscotch pattern.

Waluigi rubbed his hands together. "Well, this doesn't look bad at all." He jumped up on the first cloud and planted his feet into the fluff. As he was positioning himself for his next jump, though, he felt the cloud begin to disperse beneath him. He scrambled quickly to jump up to the next cloud. As he watched the first one dissipate and begin to gather together again, he felt the cloud he was currently standing on begin to disappear.

Not even thinking, the purple-clad thief turned around and began jumping quickly. He hopped up and up, wasting no more time looking at clouds gently exploding from beneath his feet. He was glad to find that the giant cloud at the top of the staircase was sturdy.

Of course, Waluigi found that this cloud was covered in Ninjis. He smacked a couple clean off of the cloud with his tennis racket, and he kicked the rest into concussions.

Waluigi ran around the large cloud until he came across a structure that looked a lot like a cage. He held his chin and raised an eyebrow. "Well, this looks like the sky dungeon that Alboort was talking about." He walked up to the cage. "Hey, Mario! Mario? Are you in here, you loser Fireball!?" He scoured the cage, but didn't find so much as a lump inside.

Sighing, he pulled out his Thieftech and flipped it open.

Alboort smiled as soon as he answered the call. "Did you find Mario?"

Waluigi shoo his head frowning. "No. But I found some homicidal clouds that would like nothing better than to drop me hundreds of feet to the ground."

Alboort laughed nervously. "Sorry. It's not like I could really test the clouds myself, seeing how I can't exactly climb up vines."

"Not to mention the fact that you pretty much fly." Waluigi tapped his foot on the cloud. "And that you're already dead."

Alboort shrugged, tugging on his bowtie. "Well," he swallowed, "you can't stop now. You still have two more dungeons to check out."

"Yeah, you just wait until I get back to the van." He roughly slammed his Thieftech shut and shoved it into his pocket viciously.

The lanky man walked back to the side of the cloud and looked down the cloudy staircase. Looking at his options, he decided to not climb down the stairs. Instead, he double-jumped and began swimming through the air. He glided gently down, over the staircase, until he was just above the second to last step. He found himself too low to finish the glide, so he landed on the step beneath him and triple-jumped over the last one, landing on the main cloud with both feet.

Waluigi pulled out his Thieftech and look around. Like before, despite the fact that there were still two more sky dungeons left, he could only find one Destination Point. He pulled his Thieftech down and put it away. He didn't care for this new path as much as he had the first one.

The thief walked over to the freakishly thin cloud path. He looked ahead to see that the path didn't even make a solid road to the next cloud over, but in fact, had several splits in it. To top it off, when he tried to jumped up and land on the cloud like a wire, he found that it wasn't thin enough for the trick. He swallowed as he nearly fell off of the thin strip of cloud. He gingerly stepped along the path.

Of course, halfway along the first strip, he saw several Ninjis running towards him. Scowling, he glared at the cat-like creatures. He pulled out his tennis racket and bounced each of them off of the thin path as they jumped up at him. Watching out for anymore, he kept his racket in his hand as he scooted along the path.

Waluigi soon neared the end of the first part of the path and looked down at the second. Calculating his moves, he jumped only once and measured the area beneath him until he saw his shadow over the path and stomped down onto the path.

The second path showed itself to be more plagued with Ninjis as two waves came running at him. Fortunately, they were all lined up perfectly to be either kicked or racketed off, but Waluigi was careful to keep his balance. He wiped his brow after smashing the last one.

The third piece of the path loomed over Waluigi's head. He was able to jump straight up and land neatly on top of it, but he didn't have time to pull out his tennis racket. Instead, he jumped over the first wave of Ninjis and let them fall off of the end of the path. He whipped out his tennis racket and smashed the rest of them away as he walked forward.

As Waluigi finally reached the end of the path, he smiled with relief to find that this sky dungeon didn't have guards sitting around it. However, when he walked over to the cage, he found that there was nothing inside of it. He even reached his arm through and patted the cloud floor.

The dark thief frowned as he pulled his Thieftech on it and called Alboort. "You know, I'm beginning to wonder why you sent me out here. Wart looks like he's too fat to even hop, let alone climb two hundred feet into the air, so how could he even get Mario up here."

"He has guards." Alboort rapidly tapped keys. "Besides, if Mario isn't there, then I'm pretty sure that he has to be in the last sky dungeon."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "What makes you so sure?"

"The complicated process to open it." Alboort clicked on his mouse. "You see, the actual dungeon itself is on the cloud that the vine leads up to. But the button to open it is on a distant cloud. I'll set up a Destination Point for the button." He tapped several keys. "Don't worry. With how secretive this dungeon is, Wart must keep something important in there. Mario, I should say."

Waluigi nodded. He flipped his Thieftech shut and stuck it in his pocket. He walked over to the thin path and nimbly made his way back across it. Once on the main cloud, he pulled out his Thieftech and placed it over his eye. He frowned as he found the last Destination Point, though, as the cloud it floated over had no apparent path to it.

He put his Thieftech away and looked to see that there was a staircase in that direction. He groaned as he realized what he had to do. He quickly jumped up the staircase of disappearing clouds, and on the last cloud, he performed a triple jump and began swimming through the air.

The descent was slow, but the covered distance was great. However, Waluigi found that he wasn't quite close enough. He performed a quick Whirl-Luigi and found himself treading up the side of the cloud to get up on top. Once there, he found the massive button and Earthquake Stomped on top of it.

Waluigi wasn't expecting to get bounced back to the main cloud by the giant button, though. After getting over the bump on his head, however, he wasn't ready to raise any qualms. He looked up at the sky dungeon to see the largest ruby he had ever seen in his life. Absentmindedly, he pulled up his Thieftech and opened it. "Alboort, Mario isn't here."

Alboort groaned. "That's... that's not good at all!" He placed a hand to his temple and sighed. "I was hoping we wouldn't have to do it, but it looks like we're going to have to go for a direct assault on the castle."

"Yeah yeah. Sounds good. You start planning that." He stood up and walked over to the cage. "Something tells me it's going to be a while before I get back to the van."

Alboort jumped. "What on earth are you talking about, Waluigi!? What's wrong."

"Nothing's wrong. I just have something I need to take care of." Waluigi snapped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. He raised his leg high and began bashing the cloudy bars with bludgeoning kicks.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Waluigi_

---

So, two failed attempts at finding Mario. Looks like things just aren't going to be easy for Team Waluigi. Well, I'm afraid I don't really have any fun comments for this chapter, so please enjoy and review.


	6. Chapter 1 Part 5

Chapter 1.5: Key to the Castle

Everyone sat in the back of the van as Alboort adjusted his projector.

Red shifted restlessly in his chair. "Please tell me this is going to be an actual slideshow and not just one picture."

Alboort floated towards the screen. "Just clam down. I'm working on things." He held up the button for his projector and clicked it, bringing up the picture of the question mark from earlier that day.

Red groaned.

Alboort ignored the imp and cleared his throat. "Anyways, whereas Mario's location was a mystery before, it has come to my attention that, with the more out of the way places empty, Mario most likely is being confined in Wart's castle."

"What!?" Waluigi stood up and glared down at the Boo. "Are you playing stupid or something? A moron could have figured out that a prisoner would be kept in the villain's castle! You had me and Star-Krossed go running around for no reason!"

Alboort laughed nervously, holding his hands up defensively. "Calm down, Waluigi. It's not like you died or anything."

Waluigi growled. "You had me running around on the clouds!"

Captain Syrup placed a thoughtful finger on her cheek. "Actually, now that I think about it, Mario isn't one to traditionally get captured. Sure, he was captured by King Boo once, but that's not exactly a record worth noting."

Ashley nodded. "I heard Wario ranting about Mario quite a bit while I worked for him. Seems like Mario is the perfect goody-two-shoes who couldn't lose, even if he was cemented into a guillotine. Not to mention the fact that he doesn't seem to sit in one long enough to get captured by anyone."

Waluigi paused. Raising an eyebrow, he turned to Star-Krossed. "That's a good point. How did Mario get captured? Wart looks too lazy to get off of his fat butt to kidnap anyone, let alone Mario."

Star-Krossed shrugged. "I don't know. I showed up after he was captured, and I received obscure information that he was here."

Alboort adjusted his glasses. "Anyways, how Mario was captured shouldn't be our concern, but how we get him out." He pressed the button, and the question mark was replaced by Wart's castle. "Now, we're going to need the keys to get into the castle. One for the main door, and two for the inner gates."

Waluigi grinned as he sat down. "Now this is a job I think I can get behind."

Alboort nodded. "I thought so. Fortunately, Wart really doesn't have a lot of common sense, so even if his guards have tried to warn him about us, which is unlikely because there isn't a lot of easy access for them, he chose creatures that could only speak in gibberish or high-pitched squeaks, so he would have no idea what they're talking about."

Captain Syrup raised an eyebrow. "Okay, I've worked with a lot of non-human creatures, and even the ones who don't speak the same language as me have some other means of communication. What kind of idiot chooses associates they can't even communicate with."

"Obviously Wart." Alboort tapped his projector button, and Mouser showed up on the screen. "Unfortunately, Mouser isn't such an idiot. In fact, he's probably one of the more clever creatures we've ever faced. He's going to have to be taken out, if we're going to get anywhere near the castle safely."

Ashley crossed her arms. "Is that why you wanted your bombs upgraded."

Alboort swallowed, rubbing his hands together uncomfortably. "Yes. I don't really like it, but it seems that Mouser's only real weakness is bombs. Otherwise, I'd probably send you or Star-Krossed after him."

"What about me?" Captain Syrup cracked her knuckles. "When am I going to get a job. I'm still part of the crew, too."

"Yes, but we needed to save you for a special job." Alboort clicked the button, switching Mouser for the Nightmare Machine. "You see, Waluigi might be pretty stealthy, but he's not particularly good with machines." He chuckled. "Actually, I'm not all that good with machines, either. Just computers. This means that we need you to go inside and sabotage this device. Otherwise, Wart could conjure up an army in the blink of an eye."

Captain Syrup raised an eyebrow, pouting. "Whoop-de-doo. Waluigi could just blow the thing up."

"Ah, but we need the Nightmare Machine to be reprogrammed, not destroyed." Alboort turned to the screen. "Besides, we couldn't guarantee that Waluigi could outrun the explosion, if he were to destroy it."

"I suppose that's true." Captain Syrup smiled. "All right. I think I could fiddle with it."

Alboort turned to the group and nodded. "However, we need those keys. Otherwise, the rest of the jobs are completely pointless."

Waluigi stood up and stretched. "Okay, just give me a few minutes. I'm still a little stiff from the fear of falling hundreds of feet out of the sky."

Captain Syrup giggled. "And a little sore from hauling a two hundred pound ruby around."

Waluigi shrugged. "Yeah, maybe that, too."

---

Waluigi stepped out of the side of the van. He ran around it, so that he could see the castle. He pulled out his Thieftech and flipped it open. "Okay, Alboort, you want me to get some keys?"

Alboort nodded. "It's not just that simple. You see, there are three keys in total, one for the main door, and two for the inner gate. Now, before I continue, do you remember how to pick pockets."

Waluigi rolled his eyes. "Again with the interview. Seriously, Alboort, I haven't forgotten how to pick pockets or anything else. All I have to do is sneak up on someone and press the C button when I'm in range."

"Very good, but you can also pick the pockets of guards who have been planted into the ground with your Earthquake Stomp." Alboort tapped several keys. "Now, the keys have all been given to Ninjis. Not only will they be pointed out by destination markers, but they will be giant, about as tall as Ashley."

"Which is about as tall as Captain Syrup, too, seeing how much Ashley as grown lately." Waluigi paused and blinked a few times. "Hold on a minute! How the heck am I supposed to pick the pockets of something that doesn't even have pockets."

"Waluigi, you've seen bipedal animals in action before. They always have pockets, even if they don't wear pants." Alboort tapped several keys. "Now, even though one of these Ninjis Generals is out and about, you're going to find that two of them are inside the castle. Standing on the roof, of course, seeing how that's where all ninja-like creatures like to hang out."

Waluigi furrowed his brow. "Couldn't I have figured that out with my Thieftech and the Destination Points? I'm not an idiot."

Alboort sighed. "Of course, sorry. I guess I'm just feeling a little tense due to having been out of the field for so long." He tapped several keys rapidly. "Just oe last warning, don't get caught. We don't want the Ninji Generals to try to alert Wart... even if he can't understand a single thing they're saying."

Waluigi frowned. "Fine. Just let me get to work already. I'm already annoyed because you had me waster my time trying to break my neck this morning."

Alboort chuckled nervously. "All right. Sorry."

Waluigi flipped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. Seeing how there would be a clear difference between other Ninjis and the Ninji Generals, he decided to go ahead without consulting the destination points.

The first area the thin thief decided to check was around the castle. He Heel Slammed a few regular Ninjis from behind to clear the area for an eventual need for evasive actions, though it didn't take him much longer to find the giant cat-like creature.

The Ninji General was waddling close to the castle walls, obliviously trumping his way around and around the castle. He didn't pay any heed to anything farther than his arm's reach from the castle.

Waluigi smirked to himself. "Too easy." He strode up behind the giant Ninji as it turned the corner to head towards the back of the castle. He reached forward to find that there was a furry pocket on the purple creature's side. The first few times, he only pulled out a handful of coins, but he soon pulled out the giant key. As he placed the key in his own pants pocket, he snickered. He kicked the giant lummox into the air, grabbed it around the neck with his heel and smashed the creature into the ground, causing it to explode into smoke.

Waluigi turned to look up the castle wall/ He jumped up and latched onto a ledge. He vaulted himself up to the next ledge and grabbed on. He continued until he was standing firmly on top of the castle. He immediately ran over and hid behind a flagpole.

Waluigi stayed in his hiding place until one of the Ninji Generals walked past the pole. As the dark violet creature began walking away, he walked up behind it and stuck his hand in its pocket. It took only two tries to pull out the gold key. He walked to one side of the large creature to look around them. Not seeing the other Ninji General, he shot the one in front of him up in the air and smashed it into the roof.

After disposing of the second Ninji General, Waluigi jumped around the roof until he spotted the third. The thing was even though this one wasn't walking around, it was jumping up and down.

The dark-clad thief hopped down and walked gently up behind the giant cat-like creature. After watching the creature for a moment, he shot his hand out to search the pocket as soon as it had landed. He had to be quick with each snatch, so it took him quite a few times before he could pull the key out. Having been annoyed by the waste of time, he pulled out his tennis racket and whacked the Ninji General off of the roof to plummet to the ground.

After watching the purple creature splat against the ground, Waluigi whipped out his Thieftech and flipped it open. "Okay, Alboort, I have the keys."

Alboort raised both eyebrows. "That was kind of quick." He clicked on his mouse. "Well, I guess you don't like wasting time when you can be doing things you enjoy more. Come back to the van, we can't risk you dropping those keys somewhere, especially with how crucial they are for the big heist... er, I mean rescue later."

Waluigi scratch the back of his head. "Yeah, are we even going to be hi-jacking any vaults this go around."

Alboort shook his head. "I'm afraid not. I don't think Wart even keeps a vault."

Waluigi shrugged. "Ah well, we got that ruby, and that's all that matters." He flipped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. He turned to the side of the roof and jumped off, landing gracefully on the ground. He turned towards the van and ran off.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Waluigi_

---

I know. I know. Two Waluigi jobs in a row looks like I'm playing favorites. However, Waluigi is the main character of the story, so it's very likely he's going to be the one with the most jobs. Don't worry, Alboort and Captain Syrup will get their own jobs soon enough.

Please, enjoy and review.


	7. Chapter 1 Part 6

Chapter 1.6: Explosive Impact

Alboort gently floated out of the van. He pulled out a white Thieftech and pulled it open. "Okay, Waluigi, you ready at the computer?"

Waluigi leaned back in his chair and sighed. "You know, seeing how as you're the one who comes up with the plans, why do you need me to watch the computer and tell you where to go?"

Alboort furrowed his brow. "Because I would very much like someone to keep tabs on me, in case I get into any serious trouble." He pushed his glasses up. "And you're the only one I trust behind a computer, besides myself."

"Yeah, speaking of trouble," Waluigi moved the mouse around and clicked a couple times on it, "why are you the one going after Mouser? Wouldn't it be more sensible to send Ashley out there or something?"

Alboort swallowed. "Well, that's true, except that Mouser isn't as stupid as Wart. At least, that's how he acts. It's either that, or he's about twice as stupid as Wart, seeing how he's willing to throw bombs everywhere. Either way, he's very dangerous, and I think I'm probably the most likely to luck out against him, seeing how as I'm already... you know, dead."

Waluigi nodded. "So what exactly is the big deal with taking out Mouser, anyways? Wouldn't it help to have someone as self-destructive as him hanging out to blow up Wart's castle for us while we're in there?"

Alboort frowned. "Only if you like the idea of being smashed with rubble." He adjusted his glasses. "Besides that, Mouser is the only one aside from us that owns a full set of keys to the castle. You see, he prefers living outside of the castle, and needs a way in and out. I'd prefer he didn't just randomly become involved while we were pulling the heist, it would completely ruin our stealth."

"I guess that's a good point." Waluigi tapped a couple of keys and clicked on the mouse. "I guess that would also explain why the coordinates for your Destination Point aren't the same for the castle."

Alboort nodded. "I'm just glad that it's Mouser and not Tryclyde. Tryclyde is both smarter and more dangerous than Wart and Mouser put together."

"Yeah yeah." Waluigi drummed his fingers on the desk. "Are you going after Mouser or not?"

Alboort jumped. "Well, aren't you going to review my move list?"

Waluigi sighed. "What is it with you and playing dumb recently? I mean, I could completely understand it when you had Star-Krossed out here, but you, me, and the others have already done fieldwork." He raised an eyebrow. "Or are you seriously going to tell me that you forgot all of your skills?"

"Sheesh! Is asking for a refresher really a crime?" Alboort pushed up his glasses. "Anyways, unlike all of you with legs, I can only jump once by pressing the A button. However, by holding the A button down, I can gently float down, even from the greatest heights. "

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "And why would you need to worry about safely, if you can't really die?"

Alboort froze. "Um, well, you see..." He rubbed the side of his head. "Well, it will allow me to glide to far away surfaces, like jumping over a ravine."

Waluigi rolled his eyes. "Alboort, you're not going to jump over any ravines or off of any cliffs or anything like that! If you want to recap, then recap on your fighting skills. I think we pretty much all know that you jump with A and run by shaking the Wii remote."

"Ah, that's a good point." Alboort patted his sides. "Well, by pressing the B button, I use the standard Boo lick attack. It's crass, not very subtle, and doesn't have a lot of power behind it, but it will stun enemies for a brief second."

Waluigi furrowed his brow. "Didn't you already say that this Mouser guy was only hurt by bombs? What does it matter if you try licking him or not."

Alboort held his hands up defensively. "Calm down, Waluigi, I'm getting to that." He cleared his throat and pulled out a bomb. "By pressing the Z button, I place a bomb on the ground. Of course, unlike Bomb-ombs Mouser's bombs, they don't just blow up after a certain amount of time. I get to control when they blow up by pressing the Z button again to activate them."

Waluigi leaned his chair back as far as possible without falling over.. "And, if I'm not mistaken, you can press and hold the 2 button to vanish."

Alboort nodded. "Unfortunately, I can't move, but enemies can't see me in that condition."

Waluigi tried to balance a pencil on his nose. "Okay. Class is over. Now go get that mouse!"

Alboort jumped. "All right. All right. I'm going!" He pushed his Thieftech shut and put it away. After looking around to make sure the coast was clear, he began floating towards the castle.

On his way to the castle, Alboort disappeared to avoid being seen by some Ninjis. The small creatures just hopped along on their merry way, not even acknowledging that they felt a presence. After, they passed, the Boo reappeared and continued on to the castle.

Alboort had to vanish several more times to avoid being seen, but he soon made it to the front door of the castle. As he looked up, he shook his head and turned away from the building. He floated to his left and flew away from the castle.

After floating on for a little bit, Alboort came across a much smaller stone building. He circled it a couple times until he was sure he could identify the front door. He turned around to make sure nobody was watching. After he was sure the coast was clear, he stuck a bomb and floated away a bit. Turning back to the bomb, he watched as it blew the wooden door open.

"What de heck!" A giant mouse with a par of massive sunglasses on stepped out of the busted door. "Say, who's de wise guy? Nobody gets away with blowing up my door, see?"

Alboort swallowed as he saw Mouser's gaze aim straight towards him."

"So youse is de wise guy, huh?" Mouser pulled out a giant bomb. "Well, buddy, you want some bombs? Here, have some bombs!!" He threw the giant explosive at the Boo.

Alboort hopped to the side and floated away from where the bomb fell. When he was out of the bomb's range, he vanished.

"Pulling a Houdini, huh?" Mouser pulled out several more bombs. "Den I guess I'm just gonna have to blow de whole place to pieces." He began lobbing bombs left and right.

Alboort reappeared and jumped. "I forgot this guy was a maniac." He floated quickly away as he was trailed by the lobbed explosives. After a minute or so he grunted to himself. Though, he was clearing the bombs, the speeding around was starting to really take it out of him. "What am I going to do? At this rate, I won't be able to even touch him. He's just not giving me enough time to set any of my own bombs." His eyebrows raised. "Wait a minute."

The Boo changed his course and headed straight for the giant rat. He hopped from left to right as a couple bombs aimed for his head.

Mouser danced back a little as the Boo approached him, but he kept lobbing bombs. As the Boo paused in front of him, he cracked it in the head with a bomb. Of course, retrospect literally hit him as the bomb rolled back to his feet, glowed red, and caught him and the stunned Boo in the explosion.

Though Alboort was thrown off by the bomb's explosion, he was able to recover and floated up to the giant rat and placed a bomb near his opponent's feet. He floated away a bit before detonating his own explosive contraption.

Mouser coughed at the pair of explosions he had been caught in. He pulled out another bomb and flung it. "Yeah, keep laughing, smart guy! I can take de heat!"

Alboort once again found himself on the run. This time, however, he decided to spiral his way towards his enemy. Not only was it effective at dodging bombs, but it kept him out of the line of fire for any stunning blows to the head. When he neared the mouse's feet, he placed another bomb and floated on.

This time, Mouser was smart and didn't drop any bombs near himself. He didn't pay attention to what had been set at his feet, though, and was caught off guard as Alboort's bomb was activated. He coughed, but that didn't slow down his bomb throwing. He smiled viciously as his lobbing became faster.

Alboort began sweating as the bombs started dropping closer to him. He spiraled and weaved and hopped out of the way, but he couldn't avoid getting hit by at least one or two of the bombs. He was a little surprised to see that Mouser had switched to fisticuffs when he got into close range, so he vanished.

Mouser growled. "Youse thinks youse can hide from wise guy." He turned around. "Youse gots another thing coming!"

Alboort reappeared and floated up behind Mouser. He placed a bomb just below his enemy's tail and floated away some distance.

Mouser turned and pointed at the Boo. "All right, wise g-" He was flung backwards by Alboort's exploding bomb. He fell on his back, but he began pushing himself back up.

Alboort jumped and quickly floated forward.

Mouser finally got himself up to his feet. He turned to the charging Boo and pulled out a bomb. "All right! Youse asked for it!"

Alboort let his tongue fall out of his mouth and slapped it up the front of Mouser.

Mouser was stunned by the sudden attack. "What de heck! Dat's digusting!"

Alboort placed a bomb at Mouser's feet and floated past the giant rat.

Mouser turned and glared at Alboort. "Youse is one annoying wise guy!" He paused and looked at his hand to see that the bomb was glowing a dangerous red.

Alboort pulled out his bomb activation device and pressed the button on it, catching Mouser in a massive explosion.

Mouser flew up in the air, patches of his fur scorched off. "NO WAY!!!" He landed on his head and flew over on his stomach.

Alboort floated forward and looked down at his opponent. He poked him a couple times. Sure that Mouser was unconscious, he pulled out his Thieftech and pulled it open. "Okay, Waluigi, I'm done."

Waluigi looked Alboort up and down. He laughed. "Well, I guess I'm glad you didn't send me out there to fight Mouser. You look horrible."

Alboort laughed sarcastically. "Yeah, yeah. Just Ashley to come out here and grab Mouser. If all else fails, we could at least go with a hostage trade."

Waluigi swiveled in his chair. "Hey, Ashley! You mind going out to grab a rat?"

Alboort smiled wistfully and shut his Thieftech. Folding his hands together, he turned around and leaned against the unconscious Mouser, feeling the actual wear of the battle.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Alboort_

---

Okay, like in the last Waluigi the Master Thief, there will be both a big boss in the big heists, and a mini-boss that typically has to be done away with before the gang goes in for the kill. It's just to give a little bit more of a Mario fighting feel to the game, even though this is based off of Sly Cooper's playing format.

However, I'm glad that whole terrorist scare is over with, or else I could just see all the comments I'd get flinging this many bombs around. What can I say, though? If you fight fire with fire, then you should fight bombs with bombs.

Speaking of bombs, I'm sure a great deal of players would try to think they're smart by just sitting in front of Mouser and letting him blow himself up, but you have to realize that, like all good video game villain, Mouser starts out with more health than you do. You'd have to fight back some time.

BTW, even though Alboort can't actually die, he still has a health bar and can be knocked out.

Please, enjoy and review.


	8. Chapter 1 Part 7

Chapter 1.7: Nightmarish Sabotage

Captain Syrup leapt out of the side of the van and landed nimbly in a three-point stance. She stood up quickly, whipping out her Thieftech and flipping it open. "Okay, Alboort, what do you have planned for me?"

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Well, like I said before, Waluigi and I are pretty good on a computer, but we're not exactly what you'd call mechanics. You, on the other hand, have a long history of being one of the greatest mechanics on the seven seas."

Captain Syrup laughed. "Well, someone certainly is trying to flatter, not that I would disagree with you or anything." She placed her hands on her hips. "But if you know so much about me, you'll know that flattery isn't going to get very far with me."

Alboort smirked. "Unless it comes from Waluigi, of course."

Captain Syrup crossed her arms and huffed playfully. "That is none of your business." She raised an eyebrow. "Speaking of business, I think this job of yours involves me going inside of Wart's castle and wrecking a Nightmare Machine or something of the like."

Alboort tapped several keys. "Not exactly. Rather, we want you to sabotage it in not quite so violent a manner. Otherwise, I'd just send Waluigi in to bust the thing up with his baseball bat."

Captain Syrup held her chin. "Well, I suppose that's true."

Alboort nodded. "Anyways, before we discuss sabotage, we'll need you to get into the castle to begin with."

Captain Syrup sighed. "So I guess that you'll want me to go over my technique list."

Alboort furrowed his brow. "Well, excuse me, but we didn't exactly get to see you in action a whole lot during our last chain of heists."

Captain Syrup rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Well, I suppose I can't exactly argue with you on that. All I did was fight Star-Krossed and help to take down the Golden Emperor."

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Yeah? Well, those might have been important, but it's not like you went on half as many jobs as Waluigi, Ashley, or I."

Captain Syrup pouted. "Are you finished rubbing it in yet?"

Alboort held his hand sup defensively. "All right. Sorry. I didn't expect you to get so upset." He turned back to his keyboard and tapped several keys. "Okay, let's get this over with."

Captain Syrup looked away from her Thieftech and huffed. "I'm not sure if I want to talk to you anymore."

Alboort sighed. "Look, if I let Waluigi lead you through this mission, Ashley will probably complain to me that she didn't get Waluigi to lead her through her first mission, and then things will just become a mess. Maybe we can see about getting Waluigi to do on our next mission."

Captain Syrup rolled her eyes. "Very well." She turned back to Alboort. "Anyways, like Ashley, I can perform a double jump. My attacks, however, is much more similar to Waluigi's pattern of attacks. By pressing the B button, I perform a simple sword slash, but by pressing it in rapid succession, I can perform a pretty fair sword slash combo. Pressing the Z button allows me to perform a Sword Juggle, sending my enemies up in the air. I can juggle an enemy as many times as I want, but I can only do it to one enemy at a time."

Alboort's eyebrows shot up. "Well, that is pretty good." He tapped several keys.

"Now, hold on, I'm not finished." Captain Syrup placed her hand on her hip. "If an enemy hasn't seen me yet, I can juggle them up in the air and slash them them with one of my swords by pressing the B button to complete my Guillotine combo."

Alboort adjusted his glasses. He turned to keyboard and tapped quickly. "Okay, let's talk about some more airborne skills. You can't slash you're way in through the front door."

Captain Syrup raised an eyebrow. "Do I honestly look that stupid to you? Like I'd just walk up to danger." She laughed. "Honestly, I try to avoid direct confrontation, if I can."

Alboort laughed nervously. "Right. Well, um, those aerial tactics, then?"

"Right." Captain Syrup placed thoughtful on her cheek. "Well, while I'm in the air, I can press the B button to perform Pillage Plunge. It doesn't have the impact damage of Waluigi's Earthquake Stomp or Star-Krossed's Gravity Surge, but if it knocks out an enemy, I get three times as many coins as a reward. It also adds a little height to my jump, but it's not too significant. The Z button lets me use Sword Spin. It's not as fast or powerful as Waluigi's Whirl-Luigi, but it lasts a little longer, letting me glide a little bit before dropping to the ground."

Alboort nodded, but frowned. "Well, those are good if you ever got in a fight with a flying opponent, but it's not like you can just grab onto ledges like Waluigi."

"Ah, so you want me to go on the castle's roof." Captain Syrup smiled slyly. "Well, I do just happen to have a Grappling Hook on hand. I press the 2 button to pull it out, aim with the control stick, and press the A button to shoot it. It's at least as effective, if not more so, as Waluigi's Triple Jump."

Alboort furrowed his brow. "You seem to like comparing yourself to Waluigi a lot." He sighed and clicked on his mouse. "Anyways, I'd like to see this Grappling Hook of yours. Try climbing that cliff over there."

Captain Syrup looked over at the cliff next to the van. She flipped her Thieftech shut and pocketed it. She reached into her thigh pack and pulled out a strange, gun-like contraption. She aimed it at the top of the cliff and pulled the trigger, firing what looked like an anchor up at the cliff. After the anchor latched itself to the top of the cliff, she pulled the trigger again and was launched up the cliff, flying slightly over the cliff and landing nimbly on her feet. She stowed her Grappling Hook away and pulled out her Thieftech. As she flipped the cell phone-like device open, she smirked. "So how was that?"

"Impressive, and with great time, to boot." Alboort tapped several keys rapidly. "All right. Make your way towards Wart's castle. I'll give you further instruction there."

Captain Syrup nodded. After putting away her Thieftech, she turned to the castle and ran in that direction.

The pirate was pretty surprised that she hadn't encountered any Ninjis or other guards on her way to the castle, but she didn't complain. As she approached the castle walls, she pulled out her Grappling Hook and aimed it at the top of the castle wall. She fired it, and the anchor lodged itself in the stone roof. She let herself be dragged up through the air.

After landing neatly on top of the castle, Captain Syrup stepped towards the middle of the roof. She pulled out her Thieftech and flipped it open. "All right, Alboort, where am I supposed to go from here."

Alboort tapped a couple of keys. "Well, Waluigi slipped into a chimney earlier to get pictures."

Captain Syrup looked up and stared at the thin black chimney. "You mean that flue over there?"

Alboort nodded. "Yeah. I'm pretty sure that's it."

Captain Syrup raised an eyebrow at the chimney, looked down at herself, and back. "Yeah. I don't think so. See, this is where my similarities to Waluigi sort of stop."  
Alboort scratched the side of his head. "Well, I suppose there should by more then one way into the ventilation system. Call me when you find it, but if you don't, you're going to need to go down that chimney."

"Then I guess I better find an alternate opening." Captain Syrup flipped her Thieftech shut and pocketed it. She walked around until she found a large air duct near one of the corners. She pulled the grate off and threw it to the side. Sliding in feet first, she let herself fall down the curved tube.

As the pirate landed in a wide corridor of the vent, she smiled. She pulled out her Thieftech and flipped it open. "All right. I'm in."

Alboort nodded. "All right. I need you to see if you can get into the throne room. Most preferably the vent that is just behind the Nightmare Machine."

"I'll see what I can do."

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "If you can't get behind the Nightmare Machine, try to come out behind Wart, out of sight, and be as discreet as possible.

Captain Syrup nodded. "All right. But I would like to spend the least amount of quality time with Wart as possible."

"Just find a way into the throne room. We'll talk about what to do once you're in there."

"All right. I'm on my way." Captain Syrup flipped her Thieftech shut and pocketed it. She began crawling through the ducts. She had to decide her way through a few forks, and she had to bump into a couple of dead ends, but she was soon able to see the bright light of the throne room. There was just one problem.

Captain Syrup pulled out her Thieftech and flipped it open. "Okay, Alboort, I'm pretty sure that I'm looking at the throne room, and judging from the lighting, I believe that it's even behind the Nightmare Machine."

Alboort smiled. "That's great! Now all you have to do is go in and sabo-"

"There's a fan in the way."

Alboort froze. "What?"

Captain Syrup rolled her eyes. "I'm guessing this Wart guy likes to stay comfortable while he can't move. There's a giant air conditioning fan in the way of the vent's opening."

"Well, that wasn't exactly expected." Alboort furrowed his brow. "Can you get past it?"

Captain Syrup frowned. "Gee. I hadn't thought of that."

Alboort laughed nervously. "Right."

Captain Syrup shrugged. "Well, if I could get the thing to stop, I should be able to squeeze past."

Alboort tapped several keys. "Well, there should be a power box or circuit breaker nearby."

"Yeah, I think I saw one back a little bit." Captain Syrup placed a thoughtful finger on her cheek. "I can interact with it by pressing the C button."

Alboort nodded. "Can you hotwire an air conditioning system?"

Captain Syrup cocked an eyebrow and smirked. "Alboort, I could hotwire the van, if it weren't for the fact that I can't drive a stick shift."

Alboort tapped several keys. "All right. Keep me on, though. I'd like to make sure everything is all right. At least to know if you get electrocuted, and Waluigi needs to come out to get you."

Captain Syrup nodded. She latched her Thieftech over her eye and ear, turned herself around in the air shaft, and crawled back where she had come.

Soon, Captain Syrup found a metal box on the side of the shaft. She tore the lid off and looked inside.

Alboort did his best to examine the circuits inside the box from his position on the Thieftech's screen. "Okay, I think you just need to splice the red and blue wires."

Captain Syrup rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Keep your hands on your keyboard, geek. You don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about."

Alboort raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so tell me what you're going to do, master of sabotage."

"Yeah. Don't get cute, or I'll invent some sort of anti-ghost jar and stuff you in it." Captain Syrup cracked her knuckles and hovered her hands over the mess of wiring inside of the wire box. "Okay, now, in order to select the a wire, I need to use the control stick. I can pick a wire by pressing the A button. Then I just use the control stick to pick another wire, press the A button, and then I'll switch the two wires around."

"Yes." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "But which wire goes where?"

"Well, let me clue you in. That red and blue wire stuff is a myth." Captain Syrup gestured towards the four large circuits inside of the circuit box. "Besides, if you could see properly, you would see that there isn't even a blue wire in here."

Alboort swallowed. "Then what wires get switched?"

"You go with complementary colors. You know, red and green, black and white, blue and orange."

Alboort tugged on his bowtie. "Okay, but what if the wires get switched around wrong."

Captain Syrup's eyes widened. "I'd prefer not to think about that." She exchanged her hands and knees position for a crossed legs, sitting position. "Of course, I'll need to work fast after the first two wires have been switched. Otherwise, the system might go haywire. Or someone might come and check to see why a machine is acting up."

Alboort nodded. "You better hurry up, then, and get those cords switched around."

Captain Syrup nodded. She pressed the button to turn Alboort off and turned back to the circuit box. With fluid motions, she switched the red wire around with the green one and mixed the yellow and purple circuits' positions.

After the cords were switched, there was a brief rattling, followed by a clunk.

Captain Syrup pushed the circuit box back into the wall. "All right. That should buy me about five minutes, before the fan starts spinning in the opposite direction." She got back on her hands and knees and crawled down the shaft.

Captain Syrup soon found the fan and squeezed past it. She pushed the grate out of the wall and settled herself behind the Nightmare Machine. She ripped open the panel on the back and pressed the button to call Alboort back. "Okay, I'm in the throne room and ready to tinker with the nightmares."

"Not nightmares. Nightmare Machine."

"Whatever. Look, I don't have a lot of time to explain, seeing how as I don't care for the idea of being stuck between this thing and the fan." She looked back at the wires. "Now, I'm going to need to be careful. Looks like some of these wires are the same color, but different sizes."

Alboort nodded. "All right. Thanks for telling me where you're at. Just call back when you're done and safe."

Captain Syrup nodded. She turned the screen off on her Thieftech and turned back to the Nightmare Machine. She cracked her knuckles as she looked over the wires. There were of them. "All right. Let's get to work."

The first wires to be switched were the orange and blue ones. They were soon followed by a pair of tiny red and green circuits. Being the next closest, the large purple and yellow wires were exchanged, and their smaller counterparts were treated the same soon after. The larger red wire was a little finicky about coming out of the machine, but it soon traded places with the large green wire.

Captain Syrup wiped her brow and placed the panel back onto the machine. She turned back to the vent and squeezed past the fan. As soon as she was clear of the fan, she pulled her Thieftech off of her face and pressed the button to call Alboort. "Okay, Al, the machine's been rigged."

Alboort nodded. "Great!"

Captain Syrup sat up and raised a questioning eyebrow. "There's just one thing I don't understand."

Alboort adjusted his glasses. "What's that?"

"Well, you said this Nightmare Machine was supposed to create monsters. Now that I think about it, and looking at the wiring in retrospect, the wiring I left would make the machine spit out vegetables." Captain Syrup shrugged. "What use is that? I might as well have blown it up and left Wart stuck in the vent."

Alboort grinned, and his glasses glimmered. "You'll see the purpose soon enough."

Captain Syrup rolled her eyes. She shut her Thieftech and pocketed it. "Geek." She crawled her way back into the ventilation system.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Captain Syrup_

---

Okay, so we have Captain Syrup out in the field. You know, move variety gets a little difficult when you get a large group of characters together. It's even harder when Waluigi and Captain Syrup are so physically similar. Well, here's the difference in gameplay, Waluigi is the only one who can pickpocket without use of an additional gadget, and he has a whole boatload of gadgets with special effects, and these effects usually are the only ways to fulfill some of his missions. Like Alboort gets to go inside computers and other electrical devices for travel, Captain Syrup can interact with machinery and wiring as mentioned in this chapter.

Also, you'd enter a completely different screen during actual gameplay when you're dealing with wires, but that just didn't seem necessary to describe in the chapter.

BTW, if you didn't get the chimney-flue-thing joke, then I stink at subtle risque humor.

Speaking of which, I suppose there might be a little issue with what I did to Ashley. I have no regrets, but in the Japanese version of WarioWare, she started at age eight, not fifteen. Of course, the Japanese could just say that the Waluigi Gang had been retired for ten years. It wouldn't make any difference to most of my readers, but I thought I'd point it out, anyways. I'll point out other Japanese/English misnomers for the game as we progress.

Mario's rescue is the next chapter.

Please, enjoy and review.


	9. Chapter 1 Part 8

Chapter 1.8: Operation: Taste of Defeat

As everyone else sat in seats in the back of the van, Alboort stood in front of the screen.

Alboort pushed his glasses up. "We're ready to go in and save Mario." He pulled on his bowtie. "At least, we're as ready as we'll ever be."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying that you don't even know if we're going to save Mario?"

Alboort laughed nervously. "No, that's not what I'm saying at all. I am merely saying that it's not like I've taken enough interest in Wart to study him before, so it's not like I'm the most knowledgeable of this guy. Heck! Seeing how he is a denizen of Subcon, it's not like anyone is really going to know much about him."

Star-Krossed smiled. "Well, I am certain that we will defeat him."

Captain Syrup turned to the cosmic being and smirked. "And why is that? Because you're from the future?"

Star-Krossed flinched. After recovering, he cleared his throat. "I suppose you could say that." He shrugged. "However, I don't know how you're going t do it. Otherwise, I'd be the one orchestrating everything."

"And let me tell you, if you did know how we were going to do this, I'd be glad to let you do it. I care more about success than pride." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "However, seeing how we don't have that luxury, I guess we're going to have to go with my plan." He clicked the button, and a picture of Mouser showed up on the screen.

Tied up in the corner, Mouser began forcing against his gag and writhing against his bonds.

Waluigi kicked the giant rat across the face, effectively knocking him out. "Okay, what does Mouser have to with anything? We're already taken care of him."

Alboort nodded. "True, but there's more than one reason why we took Mouser into our custody." He tapped the screen. "Wart has not shown any apparent concern towards the disappearance of his right-hand man, so I guess we can rule out a hostage trade." He pointed to himself. "Rather, I'm going to need to go inside the castle, undercover as Mouser himself. Fortunately, seeing how as we have all of the castle keys, including Mouser's set, and Mouser himself, we don't need to worry about being interrupted while I'm in with Wart."

Ashley crossed her arms. "What exactly are you planning to do while you're in there?"

Alboort swallowed. "Well, for the most part, I am planning on setting up bombs inside the castle at most of the support beams. Given how late it is, I'll be surprised if Wart in even awake, let alone conscious enough to realize what is going on."

Star-Krossed jumped. "Certainly you do not intend to destroy the castle while Mario might still be in there."

Alboort shook his head. "You have to remember that I'll still be in there while the bombs are up, and I'm not really thrilled about getting crushed under the rubble of a castle, either." He turned and pointed at Captain Syrup. "Rather, while I'm playing with bombs and lulling Wart into complete unconsciousness, Captain Syrup will need to crawl through the vents and see if she can find Mario. Not only is she the only one who can turn the fans off, but there will likely be an alarms that need to be disconnected, so we don't end up with guards swarming the castle."

Captain Syrup held her chin and nodded. "Yeah, that shouldn't be too hard." She paused in thought. "However, I don't think I can go back into the vent system. The fans will be back on, and I've seen Mario." She laughed. "I don't think he could fit into a vent worth peanuts."

Alboort cringed. "Yes, I was afraid of that." He clicked the projector button, and a picture of the castle showed up. "You see, after Captain Syrup deactivates the alarm, I'll go down and blow the door open. Then we'll all run the heck out through the front door!"

Waluigi gawked. "Wait a minute! Wart might be fat, but I think that he'd get pretty mad seeing Mario get loose. He probably has something like Bowser's Koopa Clown Car."

Alboort nodded. "That's why we're sending Ashley in to take him out."

Ashley quirked an eyebrow. "Then what are the bombs for?"

Alboort smiled. "I'm going to blow the place up after you left Wart in an unconscious heap."

Waluigi frowned. "Then what am I supposed to do?"

"You'll keep the van running. I can't guarantee that the ruins of his castle won't wake him up, but they should be heavy enough to slow him down." Alboort turned to Star-Krossed. "I'm sorry, but we won;t need you for this heist."

Star-Krossed nodded. "Understood."

Waluigi held up his hand. "Wait."

Alboort turned to Waluigi, his glasses glinting fiercely. "What!? What is it?! What could possibly be wrong now?!"

Waluigi smirked and pointed at Alboort. "How soon are we starting this thing. You're the first one up."

Alboort palmed his face and groaned. "Just give me a few minutes."

---

Alboort looked into the Subcon evening before he hopped out of the van. He pulled out his Thieftech and pulled it open. "Alright, Waluigi, you ready at the computer?"

Waluigi nodded. "Yeah, I don't really know why. I mean, Ashley should be heading out soon."

"Well, I would like you to be able to contact her, in case anything bad happens."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "And why would you call me to call her, when you could just call her yourself? We all have Thieftechs, after all."

Alboort grimaced. "Well, you know she's more likely to listen to you than me." He pushed his glasses up. "By the way, would you mind manning the computer a little more often? Like, let's say, when Captain Syrup and Ashley are going out for missions?"

Waluigi blinked couple times. "Why do you ask? They seem to listen to you when you assign them missions."

"Just curious."

Waluigi sighed, resting his head on his hand. "Look, I can't believe I'm saying this, but will you just get on with your mission?"

"Ah, right." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "I'll just call you when I get near the castle."

Waluigi nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

Alboort pushed his Thieftech shut and put it away. He floated around the van and looked around. After seeing that the coast was clear, he began floating his way towards the castle. On his way, he paused a couple times to vanish, before he was seen by a Ninji, but it didn't take him long.

When he was in front of the castle, he reached into his pack and pulled out a large piece of gray fabric. He pulled out his Thieftech and popped it open. "Okay, Waluigi, I'm ready. Make sure to send out Captain Syrup to get into position."

"No problem." Waluigi took hold of his chin.

Alboort raised an eyebrow. "Is something wrong, Waluigi?"

Waluigi furrowed his brow. "Well, this is probably your first time using a costume. Back when we performed that chain of heists, I wore plenty of costumes. You? Not so much."

Alboort chuckled nervously. "Yeah, I never even had an option for the 2 button besides my vanishing trick before."

Waluigi shook his head. "That's not exactly what I meant." He stopped and stared at Alboort. "I mean, you don't even have any legs! How do you expect to fool Wart with that costume."

"Ah! That." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Well, you have to remember that Wart isn't going to be completely conscious right now. Not to mention the fact that you don't understand the complete science of bombing. Sure, you've used bombs, but this is an exact science for destruction that we're planning here."

Waluigi tipped his head from side to side. "Well, this is your plan, I guess." He rolled his eyes. "So let's see this master plan of yours that leaves me in the van and you out in the field."

Alboort raised both of his eyebrows and swallowed. "You know, when you say it like that-"

"Sorry! Your job, your duty! Not mine!" Waluigi disappeared from the Thieftech screen.

Alboort sighed, shutting his Thieftech and putting it away. He pulled the large gray cloth over his head and adjusted it a bit. He soon looked Mouser exactly like Mouser. After brushing out the last few wrinkles, he pulled out three keys, He plugged the first one into the door and swung it out. He pushed the other two keys into the gate behind it and pushed them open.

Mouser Alboort locked the door and pulled it shut behind him. After entering the short hall, he turned around and shut the gate. He reached his hands through the gate's bars, turned the keys, and pulled them out and back to him. He turned and walked down the hallway.

As Mouser Alboort walked down the hallway, he noticed that there were no doors aside from the entrance gate and the doors at the other end of the hall. He raised an eyebrow and shook his head. "Not much to this castle, is there?"

After Mouser Alboort had pushed his way into the throne room, Wart lazily turned his attention to the door. His eyebrows raised high. "Mouser? What are you doing here?"

Mouser Alboort jumped. _Oh, dang! He seems to be a little more awake than I had expected. Well, how should I respond? Should I try flattering him, or should I just tell him to ignore me? _He tapped his chin. _Well, I doubt that Mouser is the most respectful, even to his superiors, so I don't think flattery is the way to go. _"What I do is my own business, King Wart!"

Wart furrowed his brow and nodded. "Well, just be sure to check on Mario while you're here." He turned and bowed his head.

Mouser Alboort walked over to one of the four support pillars inside the throne room. He placed a bomb on the base. He suddenly felt Wart's gaze on his back. He turned quickly. "What is it, King Wart?"

Wart scratched his cheek. "I was just wondering what you were doing in that corner, Mouser. You usually pace around the room."

_Of course Mouser would do that._ Mouser Alboort pushed his sunglasses up. _Let's see, what would Mouser think about? Something that wouldn't involve pacing. Would he be thinking about how to improve his bombs, rant about what land he and Wart should take over, or brood about Mario?_

Wart raised an eyebrow. "Well?"

Mouser Alboort snapped his fingers. "Well, King Wart, I was just wondering why we haven't done in Mario yet." He pointed at a stairwell in the back of the room. "I mean, he's just down there, powerless and everything. It'd be a snap."

Wart settled back into his sitting posture. "You know very well that we aren't allowed to do that. Otherwise, I'd have have bashed that stupid plumber's head in with my bare hands."

Mouser Alboort raised an eyebrow. "Why are we not allowed to kill him, King Wart?"

Wart furrowed his brow. "If you were meant to know that, I'd explain it in full detail."

Mouser Alboort nodded. "Right, then. Not my business."

Wart nodded, scratching his chin. "However, if we were to receive the execution orders, you can bet that I'll let you help in killing off Mario."

"Very good, King Wart." Mouser Alboort took measured strides to the other front corner of the throne room. He quickly set up the bomb, and turned just in time to see Wart turn towards him. He took a thoughtful pose.

Wart furrowed his brow. "Brooding again? Sheesh, Mouser, you usually rant about everything!"

Mouser Alboort swallowed silently. _I just don't seem to know Mouser very well. He looked up at Wart. Well, it's not my fault. There's almost no data whatsoever about him. However, I need to give a believable answer. Should I say that I'm sick and can't rant, talk about Luigi, or just admit that I have nothing to rant about?_

Wart frowned. "Speak up, Mouser!"

Mouser Alboort had to buckle his false knees to prevent himself from jumping. _Well, I guess that rules out staying quiet from illness or lack of topic._ He took a deep breath. "Pardon, King Wart, but I was just thinking about that Luigi guy, and I didn't want to pester you about him. What if he comes looking for Mario? They usually stick pretty close together."

Wart laughed. "Please, that foolish plumber has also been captured."

Mouser Alboort held out his hands. "Do you know where he is?"

Wart shook his head. "But the last I saw of him, he was caged up pretty good."

"And who had him caged up, if not you, King Wart?"

Wart growled. "Don't pester me about such confidential information." His eyes grew wide. "I don't know what could happen, if I told you much more."

"Pardon again, King Wart." Mouser Alboort bowed, moving himself towards the back of the room. When he reached the third column, he started attaching the third bomb.

"Mouser!"

Mouser Alboort whirled around quickly/ He sighed when he saw Wart's back facing him. "What is it, King Wart?"

Wart scratched his chin, not even motioning to turn around. "What happened to that accent of yours? You sound so different without it."

Mouser Alboort palmed his face. _I really need to think these things through._ He looked up at Wart. _But I need something quick! Should I say that I'm sick or that I've been taking classes to get rid of my accent?_

Wart began turning around.

Mouser Alboort jumped. _Oh, come on! Where am I supposed to get those sorts of classes out here?_ "I'm just feeling a bit sick is all, King Wart. When you get sick, you talk like me. When I get sick, I talk more like you."  
Wart paused. His head moved up to the ceiling, as if he were considering what the disguised Boo had just said. "Huh. I guess I never thought about it before, but that makes sense."

Mouser Alboort sighed. He walked over to the fourth pillar and set his final bomb.

"Mouser!"

Mouser Alboort jumped and whirled around. "What!?"

Wart didn't turn to look, but his shoulders revealed all the tension in him. "Your skittering around is making me feel antsy, Mouser. Just go check on Mario and get out! I need my beauty sleep!"

Mouser Alboort nodded. He walked towards the stairwell and began his descent. About halfway down, he pulled off his costume and traded it with his pack for his Thieftech. After wiping his brow, he opened the device. "All right, Waluigi, the bombs are in place."

Waluigi nodded. "So, I guess that means that you want me to call Captain Syrup and send her to do her job, huh?"

Alboort turned to make sure that Wart wasn't coming down the stairs. "The sooner, the better. I think Wart is starting to get suspicious of me."

Waluigi nodded and disappeared from the screen.

---

Captain Syrup stood near the air vent on the top of the roof. When she felt her Thieftech vibrate, she pulled it out and flipped it open. "What's up?"

Waluigi leaned back in his chair and pointed down. "You're up, but Alboort is down. Down in the dungeon, waiting for you, that is. Time for you to squeeze in and rig up that alarm system."

Captain Syrup smiled. "Right. Give me five to seven minutes, and send Ashley in. With how Alboort described this, things are going to get messy."

"Yeah." Waluigi tipped his cap over his eyes. "I still don't understand why we're saving Mario, anyways." He looked behind himself. Raising a nonchalant eyebrow, he turned back to the screen. "I mean, no offense to Star-Krossed, but I think he's a few stars short of a galaxy."

Captain Syrup giggled. "No kidding." She placed her hand on her hip. "However, you're out here, saving Mario, because you're a multi-millionaire prankster who has a secret soft spot."

Waluigi furrowed his brow. "Are you saying I'm getting soft!?"

Captain Syrup giggled. "Talk to you later." She snapped her Thieftech shut and put it away. She turned to the open air vent and crawled inside.

As the pirate maiden crawled through the ventilation system, she came across where she had sabotaged the Nightmare Machine. After looking at it, she shrugged and crawled. Not much later, she came across a dropoff. She looked down to see that there was a fan on the way down. She pulled her head back and frowned. "Well, I certainly hope there's a power box not too far away." She turned and began crawling back from where she came.

It was only a few crawling steps before Captain Syrup found the power box. She sat down and pulled the front panel off. "Okay. Let's see. Complementary colors. Complementary colors." She reached in and switched the white and the black wire, followed by switching the red with the green wire.

The breeze inside the ventilation slowed.

Captain Syrup nodded. "Right. I should have a minute before that fan starts up again." She got back on her hands and knees and crawled down the vent. She found the dropoff and crawled off the side, letting herself fall past the fan.

Unfortunately, the drop wasn't nearly as dramatic as she had hoped. Frowning, she crawled down the new corridor until she found another power box. "I should probably find the fan that this belongs to before I crack it open. Otherwise, I might miss my dropoff." She turned and continued to crawl down the vent.

It wasn't long until Captain Syrup wound her way and nearly fell off of her second dropoff. She look down to see that there was, indeed, another fan. Nodding, she turned around and crawled her way back to the power box.

At the power box, Captain Syrup popped off the panel and looked inside. She took hold of her chin. "All right. Two purple wires and two yellow wires. Not too bad, I just have to make sure the size matches." She stuck her hands inside and pulled out the two smaller wires, cramming them into the other's slot. She tugged out the larger wires and mixed them up as well.

After waiting for the reduced current, the pirate smiled and crawled down the vent, letting herself drop down into the next level. This drop was much more significant than the last fall, and it was easy to deduce that she was now level with the dungeon.

Captain Syrup turned and crawled past a few turns. She son found a fan with light on the other side. She made to turn around, when she came face to face with the power box. She laughed. "Too easy." She popped open the panel and pushed her hands inside. Her hands glided amongst the six wires, switching the smaller blue wire with its orange counterpart. The larger set of blue and orange were the next to be traded, and the green and red wires followed without so much as an unneeded twitch.

As the fan turned off, Captain Syrup nodded. "There! I should have about three minutes until this ancient system starts spinning the other way. She turned and squeezed her way past the fan.

--

Mario sat in his cell, sitting quietly on the bench he had been provided. Suddenly, the frame of his air vent popped out, and a sleek woman in purple jumped out, landing nimbly on her feet.

Mario jumped to his feet and pointed at the woman. "Mama Mia! Who are you-a?"

The woman turned to Mario. "I'm Captain Syrup," she said with relish. She looked back and forth, between Mario and the vent. She pointed to Mario. "And you," she pointed to the vent, "are too fat to crawl into there."

Mario crossed his arms and huffed. "I'm-a not fat. I just gained a little weight at-a the buffet line at-a Princess Peach's last-a party."

Captain Syrup rolled her eyes. "Whatever, fatso." She walked over to the front of the cell and looked through them. "Hey, Alboort! You there?"

Alboort floated down the stairs and approached the cell. "Yeah. I'm here." He looked at the bars. "Well, this shouldn't be too hard to blast open." He pointed to the wall. "But you're going to need to deactivate the alarm."

Captain Syrup walked over and looked up at the alarm's power box. She laughed. "Well, even if Mario happens to be too short to reach that, it's really rather stupid to leave the power box for any security system inside a cell."

Alboort furrowed his brow. "Just deactivate it, already."

"All right. All right. Don't get your bedsheet in a bunch." Captain Syrup reached up and popped the panel off of the power box. Her eyes widened, and she smiled. "Ten wires? Not too bad." She reached up into the wiring. "However, I'm going to need to work fast, though, or else I might just set off the alarm."

Alboort jumped. "Then take care of it quickly. Besides, Wart might become suspicious and come down the stairs any second."

Captain Syrup gave the Boo a curt nod. She studied the wires for a moment and started with her switching in no time. The red traded places with the green. The large blue traded with the large orange. The black and white wires were switched with a snap. The small orange and blue wires flowed into each other's places. Though only slightly larger, Captain Syrup had been able to discern the medium-sized orange and blue wires, and she forced them to trade places.

The pirate jumped down and dusted her hands together. "Easy as pie."

Alboort nodded. "All right. Now, back up a bit. Busting you two out is easy, but it's also going to be messy."

Captain Syrup backed up. Mario only scooted a little, as he was already close to the back of the cell.

Alboort floated up to the cell's gate. He placed a bomb on the lock, floated a little bit, and activated the bomb. After the explosion, he turned around, waving his arms frantically. "Okay. Let's get out of here! If that didn't alert Wart, I don't know what will!" He turned and floated up the stairs.

Captain Syrup ran behind Mario and pushed him out of the cell and up the stairs. "Come on, fatso. Some of us have more important things than to sit around all day.

The Boo, the pirate, and the plumber quickly ran up the stairs. Not even casting a sparing glance, they ran past Wart.

Wart jumped at the sight of the threesome. "Intruders! Mario is escaping!" He growled. "Where are you, Mouser!"

The three continued to the throne room door.

Wart's growl deepened. "Fine! I'll just take care of you myself!"

Before Wart could make a single move, the door to the throne room was thrown open.

Alboort froze in place, letting Mario and Captain Syrup bump into his back. He adjusted his glasses, so they wouldn't fall off. "Ashley! How did you get in here!?"

"I'm magic." Ashley pointed her scepter out of the throne room. "Go! Waluigi is waiting just outside of the castle gates."

Alboort nodded and floated ahead, Mario and Captain Syrup in tow.

Ashley turned to Wart. Slamming the door behind herself, she took a few serious steps forward. She pulled out her vibrating Thieftech and latched it over her ear and eye. "Waluigi!?"

Waluigi nodded. "Yeah, Alboort wanted me to play triple duty, so I guess you're stuck with me leading you through your intense battle and all."

Ashley swallowed and blushed. "All right. So what did you want to tell me?"

Waluigi tapped a few keys. "Well, like Alboort told me earlier, it seems that Wart's main form of attack is by spitting bubbles at his enemies."

Ashley raised an eyebrow. "Bubbles?"

Waluigi shrugged. "Well, it seems these bubbles aren't your fun little fairy bubbles that children play with." He rubbed his head, raising an eyebrow at the computer. "They're supposed to be filled with some acidic gas, or something."

Ashley rolled her eyes. "Still... bubbles? No matter what you do with them, bubbles just aren't scary."

Wart frowned. "Bubbles aren't scary, huh?" He turned and hopped towards the Nightmare Machine. "Well, if you don't find bubbles to be scary," he turned and gave Ashley a fearsome glare, "then maybe you'll find an entire army of monsters to be scary."

Ashley crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "You have got to be kidding me. That has to be the most pathetically overused villain threat I've ever heard of."

Wart snarled. He turned to the Nightmare Machine and pressed a large button on it. He turned and cackled at the witch.

Suddenly, something bumped the large toad on the head. Turnips were spewing out of the pipes of the Nightmare Machine.

Wart's eyes widened. "Vegetables."

Ashley cast her glance towards the on-screen Waluigi. "Vegetables?"

Waluigi shrugged. "I think Alboort said something like Wart was deathly allergic to vegetables. Not only would throwing a vegetable into his mouth cause serious damage, but he'll be extra vulnerable to attacks for a few seconds afterwards."

Ashley shook her head. "He blows bubbles and is allergic to vegetables." She sighed. "I bet this idiot was too pathetic to even put an off button on his machine."

Wart turned to the Nightmare Machine and began pounding on it. "Oh, why didn't I put on off button on this thing."

"Right." Waluigi stood up from his chair. "So, I'll give you three minutes to take this loser out, and then send in Maple to make sure you're not just taking pleasure in tormenting him."

Ashley smiled slightly. "Yeah. Sounds like a plan."

Waluigi nodded, disappearing from the screen.

Ashley turneed to the frantic Wart and shot a massive magic blast at his back.

As the attack hit Wart, he flinched. He turned and growled at Ashley. "Bah! Who cares about vegetables! I'm going to pound you into pond muck."

Ashley rolled her eyes. "Bring it, you walking pile of stew meat."

Wart opened his mouth wide and began inhaling deeply. After a few short seconds, he began spewing large bubbles at Ashley.

Ashley ran to the side of the bubble stream and blasted several magic blasts at Wart. When her opponent repositioned himself to face her, she picked up a vegetable and threw it into his opening mouth.

After swallowing, Wart grabbed his throat and gasped. "Don't you know vegetables are poison!" He began hacking his lungs out.

Ashley took the opportunity to launch several well-sized magical blasts at Wart. It wasn't very difficult for her to aim, as the toad was so large.

After a few brief seconds, Wart had swallowed the turnip and growled. He turned and hopped to the other end of the room. There, he turned back to Ashley and began shooting bubbles.

Ashley had to dodge several streams before she got close to Wart. She picked up a vegetable and threw it into his wide open jaws.

Wart, again, seized his throat. "Nasty! Horrible! Good-for-nothing vegetables!"

Ashley began shooting off magical blasts quickly. She watched as the crowned toad flinched with each attack and writhed with battle against his allergy.

Once he had managed to choke down his new threat, Wart snarled. He turned and jumped into the middle of the room.

Ashley was prepared this time. As Wart was airborne, she picked up a vegetable and ran towards his landing point. When her opponent faced her, she all but shoved the vegetables down his gullet.

Wart seized up, gritting his teeth. "I'm serious! You should never eat vegetables!"

Ashley shrugged. She followed this nonchalant motion with a heavy pummeling of magical blasts.

After Wart had choked down his third vegetable, his eyes began to grow hazy. He flopped onto his back. "Rotten vegetables!" His head flopped to the side, his eyes rolling into the back of his head.

Ashley walked over and looked at the collapsed toad. She crossed her arms, furrowing her brow. "That was it? Pathetic!" She turned and walked out of the throne room.

After walking out to the van and hopping into the back, she turned to Alboort. "It's all yours, Alboort."

Alboort nodded, pulling out a massive remote control. He pressed the single button on it, and Wart's castle practically imploded.

Waluigi sat in the driver's seat, watching the spectacle in the rearview mirror. "Okay. So Wart's toast, and all we have to do is take this loser home, right?" He pointed at Mario.

Alboort pushed up his glasses. "Not exactly." He turned to the corner of the van. "We still need to take care of him."

Waluigi turned around to see Mouser stuck in the corner. "Ashley, do you need to keep him?"

Ashley shook her head. "I don't have any need for that. Aside from being giant, there's nothing special about that rat."

Captain Syrup walked up and picked Mouser up by the scruff of the neck. She turned, licked him out of the back of the van, and slammed the doors shut.

Waluigi shrugged and smirked. "All right. Time to take this loser home."

Star-Krossed smiled and nodded. "And then it's off to save Luigi."

Waluigi jerked at this comment. "What?"

Star-Krossed turned his gaze the other direction. "Well, grandfather, you need to save everyone. Even if we did save Mario, this next enemy was o0ne Mario couldn't even best."

Waluigi rolled his eyes. "Whatever." He shifted the van into gear, and they began rocketing forward.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Waluigi_

_-Alboort_

_-Ashley and Red_

_-Captain Syrup_

_-Star-Krossed_

---

Okay, yeah, weird heist. It was a little tricky thinking about how it would work.

BTW, the deal with Alboort and Wart is supposed to be a press a button to select response deal.

Anyways, I'm going to have to stop writing Waluigi the Master Thief 2 for a while. I will get back to it one day, I promise, even if it is years from now.

Please, enjoy and review.


	10. Chapter 2 Part 0

Oh wow, it's been a while since I worked on this. I have my reasons, but it's a little tough to get ideas for missions at times. Anyways, I should be getting progress made on the story now, so I hope everything is going well enough with all you Waluigi, the Master Thief, fans. Now, how about I quit jawing and continued the story?

Chapter 2.0: Let's Get Ghastly!

The sky was cloaked in dark clouds as the purple van of Team Waluigi came rolling down the path. The clouds surged with eerie lightning which streaked across the haze of black and purple. Not even a glint of sunlight or a single star could be seen through the glowering sky cover.

"Finally, we're actually visiting somewhere lovely." Ashley watched the dead trees passing by the windows.

Captain Syrup looked over her jewelry magazine. "Call me a bit more of a beach person." She promptly returned to her reading.

"I do like the purple," Waluigi looked up at the menacing sky, "but I do like my sunlight as well. I guess it comes with playing sports all the time."

"More important than your preference for purple, grandfather, this is where Luigi is imprisoned." Star-Krossed nodded sagely.

"What?" Waluigi stomped on the brakes, freezing the van in its tracks. He turned around in his seat, staring straight at Star-Krossed. "Why can't we just let that stupid Mario save the Green Bean? They're brothers."

"That is simply not possible." Star-Krossed smiled innocently. "History dictated that Mario was incapable of such a rescue, and that you were the one to do it."

Waluigi glowered, his brow dipping low.

Ashley and Captain Syrup exchanged looks, before the pirate leaned over to Alboort. "Hey, Alboort, why is Waluigi getting all worked up?"

"Waluigi and Luigi have never gotten along particularly well." Albbort pushed his glasses up. "They used to be mortal enemies. Certainly, it seems to have boiled down to a gentle rivalry recently, but they won't agree with each other on anything, let alone do any favors for each other, like coming to the rescue."

"Oh." Captain Syrup leaned away from the Boo and towards the witch. "Rivalry issues," she whispered into the girl's ear.

"I figured as much." Ashley nodded to further affirm her response. "It really explains why Waluigi was so willing to beat Luigi's brains out, when we were supposed to kidnap Princess Peach a few years back."

"Yeah. I don't think I'd be willing to save Wario, if that ever had to be the case." Captain Syrup shrugged and sighed, smiling. "Though I don't mind using him to do the dirty work for me."

Ashley smirked. "I don't think anyone would want to save Wario, were they given the choice." She giggled impishly. "I don't even think that Wario would agree to being saved."

"Huh? Whuh?" Red rubbed his eyes as he sat up in his chair. "What's going on?" He looked through one of the windows and shrieked, leaping into Ashley's arms. "Where are we?"

Star-Krossed turned from his arguing with Waluigi to Red. "We're where the famed warrior Luigi has been locked away by fiendish King Boo."

"King Boo?" Alboort raised an eyebrow at the group in the back of the van. "You mean to tell me that we're actually going to fight King Boo?"

"Of course." Star-Krossed blinked at the Boo. "Where else would they keep Luigi? Ghosts are his most renowned fear, and without any immediate anti-ghost weapons, there is simply no means for him to escape the haunted mansion. And I can tell you for a fact that King Boo will most likely kill Luigi, if we are not able to save him." His eyes darkened. "And that is something which we can't let happen!" He paused, thinking over his comments. "I'm sorry. I'm not offending you, am I, Alboort?"

"Not at all." Alboort turned back around and relaxed in his seat. "Truth be told, I never really approved of King Boo. Takes more than a crown to make a King, I always said."

"All right. All right." Waluigi turned around in his own seat and began to drive again. "I'll be first to admit that I'd be first in line to rough up that Green Bean before anyone else, but I suppose he doesn't really deserve to die."

"I knew you'd understand, grandfather." Star-Krossed's black hand emerged from his cloak and clenched with resolve. "Let's hurry. It's a race against time until King Boo decides to end it all."

"Yeah. Whatever." Waluigi rolled his eyes as he drove. "Hey, Alboort, we got anyplace to stay this time? The van's not very big, and I don't think the gang could stand one more night sleeping in here."

"Sure thing." Alboort pulled out his laptop and began typing. "I'll just write an e-mail to my cousin who lives around here. He's got a mausoleum for guests for just such an occasion."  
M-m-mausoleum?" Red was shivering violently.

"What are you complaining about, Red?" Ashley leaned back into her seat, smiling viciously. "Should be just like home."

"Yeah." Red laughed nervously. "Just like home."

Okay, this is the beginning of the next chapter. I thought King Boo was another villain who needed some more time in the limelight, but there will be a practical theme to all the villains in this story.

Hope everyone's willing to read again. This is a very fun project.

Please enjoy and review.


	11. Chapter 2 Part 1

Okay, time to get back to more Waluigi. In order to do well with this chapter, I've been doing lots of research on the original Luigi's Mansion game. You cn anticipate several aspects similar to the game, but odds are they gameplay will not be the same (Duh! Luigi's the one held by the ghosts this time). However, you can expect some character development in this chapter.

Anyways, let's start up the missions now!

Chapter 2.1: Portrait Perfect

Waluigi cautiously stepped outside of the mausoleum the gang was staying in. He shot a glance both ways before he pulled out his Thieftech. "Okay, let me get this straight, Alboort. We're just going to go and barrel into this mansion?"

"Not exactly. I'm just sending you into the mansion to do some recon." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "You see, we need to be quick with this. Evening has already fallen, and this mansion only stays put for only one night at a time. If it weren't for that, I'd want to take a lot longer to plan out how to go about all this, but we don't get that luxury."

"Taking down King Boo that hard for you?" Waluigi smirked.

"Not at all!" Alboort fumed slightly, straightening up as much as he could. "I just have a lot of history with this place, and I don't really want to think about it. The sooner we're out of here, the better."

"Sheesh. Okay. Okay. Don't get so huffy, Alboort." Waluigi held his free hand up defensively. "I was just joking around."

"Right, because if I'm a Boo, that must mean I praise King Boo." Alboort's brow furrowed. "I already told you that a crown doesn't make a king."

"Fine. I didn't mean anything." Waluigi rolled his eyes. "What exactly am I supposed to be looking for, anyways? I'm guessing Luigi's on the top of the list, right?"

"Of course. Sorry. Sorry." Alboort sniffed and pushed his glasses back up. "However, you are right. I would like you to look for Luigi. The sooner we find him, the sooner we can save him." After a brief pause, he palmed his face. "And I can't say that I ever expected to hear myself say that."

"Hey, I'm no more thrilled with saving Luigi than you are, Alboort." Waluigi rubbed the back of his head. "Anyways, what if I can't find him?"

"Well, there are a few select points of interest I would like you to acknowledge." Alboort tapped a few keys on his keyboard. "In particular, Professor E. Gadd, King Boo, Bogmire, and a few samples of other ghosts."  
"Sounds like a fair agenda." Waluigi took hold of his chin. "So, where should I start? This looks like a rather large place."

"Well, you'll find Professor E. Gadd and Bogmire wandering around outside, so they'd probably be the best ones to start wth." Alboort nodded to himself. "The doctor shouldn't be too hard to find. He typically lives in some sort of old shack that should stand out against the rest of the place."

Waluigi nodded before putting away his Thieftech. He looked around the old graveyard around the mansion before running off into the direction he deemed appropriate. He hopped over several tombstones and hid behind a few or the larger ones, looking both directions to see if there were any of the "ghosts" Alboort had told him about. When he rounded one of the other mausoleums, he froze and ran back around. He looked around again to look at what had startled him. It wasn't a ghost or a spook or anything like that, but a scrawny old man that was wandering around on the black lawn, carrying what looked like a vacuum on his back. "Something tells me that that guy is weird enough for a picture." Waluigi pulled out his Thieftech and took a picture of the little man."

The Thieftech quickly vibrated, and Alboort appeared on the screen. "Good work, Waluigi. I wasn't expecting you to find Professor E. Gadd so quickly."  
"What's that thing he's carrying on his back?" Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "If he's vacuuming the lawn, than I know a nice pond that needs watering afterward."  
"Ha ha ha. Real cute." Alboort pushed up his glasses. "Anyways, we'll get to that gadget of his soon enough. What you need to know immediately is that E. Gadd is a leading inventor of surprisingly useful gadgets, including the F.L.U.D.D. module and the ghost portraitizationizer." Alboort tapped a few keys on his keyboard. "He claims to be a leading scientist on ghosts, but I just think he's a bit of a crackpot, even if some of his gadgets to work really well."

"And just what do we plan on doing with him?" Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "He seems pretty harmless."

"True, he is rather harmless. He'll just need a little assistance from him later on." Alboort nodded to himself. "Now, keep looking. I don't know how much moonlight we have left."  
"Right." Waluigi snapped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. He jumped on top of the mausoleum he had been standing behind and looked around. "Now, what exactly is a Bogmire." He rubbed his chin, still looking. Not finding anything particularly impressive, he jumped off the building he was on and weaved his way through the graves. With how similar most of the graves looked, it was tough for him to tell where he had been or where he was going. Each cluster of stones looked like the last.

At least, they did look incredibly similar until Waluigi found himself in the middle of a ring of rather large tombstones. He swallowed as he looked around at them. Each one had a name on it, but the largest one stood on top of a small hill. Written in inky black letters, the name BOGMIRE was written quite clearly on the massive tombstone.

Holding the Thieftech in front of his face, he took the picture of the grave and laughed nervously. "Um, Alboort, I think we have a bit of a problem."

"You bet we do!" Alboort was waving his arms around frantically. "What were you thinking! You can't just take a picture of ghosts' graves, Bogmire's above all." He tensed up like he was waiting for something. "You might have woken him up!"

"Is that really that big of a deal?" Waluigi blinked st. "I thought the problem was the fact that this Bogmire guy was dead."

"Blast it, Waluigi, it's a miracle when someone isn't dead around here!" After panting a few times, Alboort swallowed. "The bigger problem is Bogmire himself. He's not just a dead person, he's a construct of dark emotions. He's incredibly powerful, a ghost's ghost, you might say."

"A ghost's ghost?" Waluigi raised his eyebrow higher. "You mean he's died twice or something?"

"No, he's nonliving. He never took mortal form." Alboort huffed, palming his face slightly. "Look, just forget it. We'll get into details later. For now, I want you to get up to the mansion and get some more pictures."  
"Right." Waluigi turned to face the mansion. "So how do I get inside?" He held back a snicker. "A skeleton key?"

"Oh, don't start up with a bunch of dead puns." Alboort shook his head in distaste. "Also, I don't want you going inside the mansion. It's too risky for now. We don't want to alert King Boo of our presence yet. He's a little more crafty than Wart was."

"All right. So I'll just snag a few pics through the windows." Waluigi nodded smartly to himself as he pocketed his Thieftech. Looking both ways to make sure of his safety, he ran off towards the giant, ghastly green mansion that stood out amongst the decrepit trees and black foliage. As he approached, though, he found himself skidding to a stop, looking straight up the side of the building. "Wow. That's a little bit taller than I expected."

The Thieftech vibrated, and Alboort appeared on the screen as it was fished out and opened. "Everything going okay, Waluigi? You stopped rather suddenly."

"Yeah. Yeah. Things are just fine." Waluigi rubbed his hand along his opposite arm, still looking up as he spoke to Alboort. "It's just that this place is a lot bigger close up than I expected."

"You'll find that happens a lot with mansions." Alboort tapped a few keys and hummed to himself. "But you do have a point. Even your triple jump can't get you high enough to climb up to the next roof. I guess it's a good thing that you can jump up to five times in Vampire Mode."

"What? We've got a batch of Vampire Candy ready, and you didn't tell me?" Waluigi fished into his backpack and pulled out a small, purple-wrapped candy.

"Well, of course you'd already have Vampire Candy. It's the only way you'll be allowed to hit any ghosts." Alboort smirked a little. "You know, only the dead can touch the dead."

"I suppose that makes sense." Waluigi held the small candy up to his face. "Speaking of the dead, though, what exactly are you expecting me to find?"

"Oh, not much, just a few ghosts, King Boo, and Luigi." Alboort stared intently at his computer screen. "My satellites tell me that it'd probably be best to take at least one picture on each floor. I only remember there being three floors before, if you don't include the basement, but it looks like they've made an addition."

"Fair enough. Four pictures coming up. Or would it be five?" Waluigi tapped his chin, gripping the Vampire Candy firmly. "It'd be five, right?"

"Right. Talk to you soon." Alboort disappeared from the screen.

Waluigi shut his Thieftech and ran to a nearby window. He looked through it to see nothing but blackness. He wandered towards the next one to see the same thing. When he approached the third one, though, a haunting, orange glow was emitted from it. He peeked through to see plump, orange ghost with long arms bobbing around the room. He slowly raised his Thieftech and snapped a shot of the floating orange blob. "Say, Alboort, I think this is a ghost, but I'm not sure."

Alboort appeared on the screen beside the ghost's picture. "Yeah. That's a ghost, all right. How could you be unsure about that?"

"I don't know." Waluigi gestured towards the window with his hands. "Aren't ghosts supposed to be white."

"Generally, they are, but you have to remember that we're not strictly dealing with Boos." Alboort held his chin thoughtfully. "There are ghosts all over the inside of this mansion, and they come in all sorts of colors. Orange, red, pink, purple, even blue and green. But that's not important." Alboort clicked on his mouse and furrowed his brow. What is important is to know that ghosts are normally very hard to hit. We're just lucky that each member of our gang has a special way to fight them. You with your vampire powers, Ashley and Red with their magic, me with my ghostliness, and Star-Krossed being a living shadow, for the most part."  
Waluigi paused to take in the information. "What about Captain Syrup?"

"What about her?"

"She doesn't exactly have a way to fight ghosts. It's not like she still has Denpuu or anything." Waluigi shrugged. "I just want to know how she'll be able to fight ghosts. Give her some Vampire Candy, too?"

"No, not really." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "I should be able to figure out something for her, but I'm not quite sure if it's a great idea to give her Vampire Candy. After all, she fights by using swords, not her feet and legs like you do."

"Yeah. That's a good point." Waluigi slowly shook his head as he thought.

"Look. Let me figure out strategy. You just worry about pictures."

"Right." Waluigi closed his Thieftech and walked away from the mansion a few steps. He looked up, pulled out a piece of candy, and popped it into his mouth. As soon as he felt the wings growing out of his back, he jumped up, spreading them as he rose higher. After lifting himself the third time with his legs, his new wings surged down, giving him massive lift and propelling him just above the outcropped roof that jutted out of the wall between the first and second floors.

Once he had his footing steady, Waluigi looked through the window in front of him. It looked to simply be a dark room. He ran along the outcropping, looking through each window to see only dark rooms. He rounded the corner and was halfway along that side, when he saw a faint, icy blue flicker in the one he had just passed. He walked back and looked through to see a rather tall ghost with green eyes and wearing a tuxedo of some sort. An unlit candelabra was held in the ghost's hand as he floated lazily down the hall.

Waiting to make sure the ghost couldn't see him, Waluigi raised his Thieftech up and took a picture of the specter.

Alboort nodded as he appeared on the screen. "I remember this ghsot quite well. That's Shivers. He's the butler."  
"Is he much of a threat?" Waluigi watched the ghostly butler as it floated down the other direction of the hall. "He's bigger than those other ghosts."

Alboort shook his head. "No, you really don't need to worry about Shivers. In fact, you don't have to worry about most of the ghosts that look like people, or "Portrait Ghosts", as Professor E. Gadd likes to call them. The professor might call them dangerous, but they're just dead members of the mansion's original household. If you don't bother them, they most likely won't bother you."

"All right. Fair enough." Waluigi continued to watch Shivers. "Now that I think about, I've got a question."

Tensing up, Alboort held his hands up defensively and shook his head furiously. "No, I was not the one who sent a fake love letter to Shivers from Melody and left the loon in a lovestruck swoon that would pretty much make his afterlife torture."  
Waluigi quirked an eyebrow and blinked a few times. "Okay, seeing how I have no idea what significance a statement like that has, I'm just going to ignore it." He continued to stare at Alboort. "Actually, I was just wondering what you were like before you died."

"Oh, that." Alboort tugged gently at his bowtie. "Well, it probably would be a good idea to ignore what I just said about love letters and such. In fact, it's not all that great of an idea to ask me about my life in general. It's really not all that important. Just keep finding ghosts, and we should be in business."

"Okay." Waluigi shrugged, snapping the Thieftech shut with the same motion. He turned around, ate a candy, and jumped off the ledge. A couple of wingbeats later, and he found himself on the narrower ledge of the roof that separated the second and third floors. This time, almost as soon as he landed, he saw a white ghost through the window in front of him. The all too familiar, spherical body left no doubt, but Waluigi followed his orders and took a picture of the Boo.

"I thought as much." Alboort swallowed as he appeared on the screen. "You can't really have King Boo without a bunch of Boos floating around. In fact, my satellite signal tells me there's a whole mess of Boos inside the mansion. It's a good thing you didn't go inside, or King Boo would have known about us for sure."

"And I'm guessing that would not be good." Waluigi hummed to himself as he looked around. "Speaking of the big guy, I guess I better go get a picture of him, huh?"

"That would be greatly appreciated." Alboort disappeared from the screen.

The Vampire Candy having worn off for the second time, Waluigi pulled out another piece and ate it. He raised his wings high and rose up quickly to the top of the roof. It was all roof, save for a small pillar. "Well, this should be pretty easy." He waltzed over and placed his elbows on the windowsill, looking inside.

The room inside the pillar was rather spacious, and much more lit up than the rest of the mansion, torches illuminating the room. On the far side of the room, a massive Boo with a crown on his head was cackling to himself, staring at a portrait of Luigi.

"Well, that's not weird at all." Waluigi pulled out his Thieftech and aimed it. "Anyways, I don't think a whole lot of Boos go around with crowns on their heads." He took the picture and quickly ducked away from the window.

"Yep. That's him, all right." Alboort wore a look of disgust as he appeared on the screen. "I really don't like the guy, but I can't say that King Boo is going to be an easy fight. Sure, we might be able to fight ghosts, but that doesn't make it any easier to kill what's already dead." He studied one of his computer screens. "Let's not forget that there is still some power behind that crown. He obviously didn't win it for having a pretty face."

"Hey, since when did you start making the jokes around here?" Waluigi crossed his arms and frowned. "Speaking of which, do you know if he likes practical jokes. I think that painting in there is supposed to distract us from rescuing the real Luigi." He rolled as his eyes. "As if it be such a torture, if that guy was gone."  
"It would be as long as Star-Krossed is here. He seems really kind of excited about rescuing Luigi for some reason." Alboort shook his head. "However, no, despite his incessant laughter, King Boo really isn't much of a jokester. That painting really is Luigi."

Waluigi's eyes grew wide. "What do you mean the painting is Luigi?" He looked back at the window, then to the Thieftech again. "I didn't think ghosts could just turn people into paintings."

"Actually, I think the power resides solely with King Boo. He often enjoys turning his victims into paintings." Alboort rapidly tapped a few keys. "I think it has something to do with the fact that Professor E. Gadd seems to enjoy turning ghosts into paintings, but I can't be sure." He tapped his chin a few times. "Anyways, I want you to get a picture of Luigi, and then you can come back."

Waluigi nodded. As the Boo disappeared from his Thieftech, he turned around. It took a little bit of maneuvering, but he was able to get a picture of the trapped green plumber.

The Thieftech began to vibrate violently. Alboort appeared on the screen, shifting his gaze around swiftly. "Careful, Waluigi, I'm picking up readings of a lot of Boo activity coming from the mansion. It seems like they're leaving through the front door for some reason." Sweat appeared on his transparent brow as he worked with his computer. "Just hang tight, and keep a look out. I have no idea what's happening."

Waluigi nodded, before putting away his Thieftech. He ran over to the edge and looked over the side. Boos surrounded the giant house, each carrying a mason jar. Every so often, one would separate from the group and place his jar down, immediately returning to the mansion afterwards.

"I don't know a lot about ghosts, but something tells me that isn't normal ghost behavior." Waluigi performed a triple jump before swimming his way across the black sky. He landed behind a gravestone that was still a little bit of a distance away from the closest jar. He looked over, pulled out his Thieftech, and took a picture of the stone container. "Say, Alboort, what do you make of this."

"Looks like some sort of security system. Something tells me that the Boos don't want company this evening, so you better be careful not to get caught." Alboort leaned back in his chair and smiled. "You did good tonight, partner."

Waluigi rubbed his arm. "I don't know. No offense, but ghosts really aren't my thing."

"They aren't really my thing either, and I am a ghost." Alboort adjusted his glasses, shaking his head. "Don't worry about it, though. Just come back to the base, and we'll come up with a plan from there."

"Sounds good to me." Waluigi snapped his Thieftech shut and placed it in his pocket. Making sure to avoid the jars, he made his way back to the mausoleum.

_Mission complete,_

_Signed,_

_-Waluigi_

Okay, if you haven't guessed, this chapter will likely revolve around Alboort.

So, dying to find out more? Is the tension just haunting you? How spooky is it to think about whether Luigi is going to be saved or night? He is in the middle of a grave situation. Why, I could just imagine the ghostly pallor he must have being so helplessly surrounded by ghosts.

Okay, I'll stop it with the dead jokes. For now.

Please, enjoy and review.


	12. Chapter 2 Part 2

Right, guess it's time to get to some more real missions. Now, understand, not every chapter is going to be super long, and I'm doing my best to do things evenly between all members.

Now, maybe I should quit pitifully sounding like I'm trying to pathetically defend myself and get on with the story.

Chapter 2.2: Two Hits and a Jarvis

Alboort steadied the projector on a rickety table before flipping the switch to turn it on. "Okay. I think that I have it." He took off his glasses and polished them off quickly, immediately replacing them. "Good grief. Sometimes, I really wish that more ghosts were open to the use of electricity. It's not like a lightbulb is the same thing as the sun."

"Just be glad I could rig that old generator." Captain Syrup coughed as she batted a cobweb out of her face. "This place wasn't built for anything of worth. Just look at it. I admit, the gothic style is very chic, but I never have been a fan of dust."

"No kidding." Ashley scowled, stomping on the floor, kicking up small dust clouds. "We have cleaning spells back in my mansion and graveyard for such reasons. It's really not practical to leave things dirty."  
Red sneezed. "Ooh. I really don't like it here."

"I know this really isn't the most... sophisticated place to stay." Alboort held a hand over his nonexistent nose, keeping himself from sneezing. "Hey, I'm just glad we have a real hideout this time. You have to admit that it's much roomier than the van was."

"Much better than the van." Star-Krossed flipped his hair back and forth. "Much, much better."

"You only have that opinion because you've been eating the dust off of the floor." Waluigi pointed down at the foot of Star-Krossed's cloak, where sand was rolling beneath the gently flapping fabric, never to be seen again.

Star-Krossed grinned sheepishly. "Can you blame me. As a galaxy eater, I have to keep eating something."

"All right. All right. Let's focus here!" Alboort looked around the room to make sure everyone was paying attention to him, before he clicked his button for the projector. He pointed to the first image, which depicted an old, somewhat cracked, clay jar. The mason jar had some intricate designs painted on the side, but the paint was faded with time. "Now, can anybody tell me what this is?"

"Oh. I know. I actually know this one." Red hopped up and down, wearing an excited grin. "It's a pot, right?"  
Ashley rolled her eyes, reaching her hand over to flick the imp on the back of the head. "Try again."

"Oh right. Right." Red placed a thoughtful finger on her cheek, tapping it a few times. "Ah, I know. It's a jar!"

"Exactly, but not just any jar." Alboort cleared his throat as he pointed back to the screen. "If I'm not mistaken, these mason jars belong to Jarvis, the jar-collecting ghost. He shouldn't be much of a threat, but if he's being used as security, I'm sure that will mean problems for us." He turned to Ashley. "For lack of a better term, we'll need you to break our way through."

"Should be easy enough." Ashley shrugged from side to side. "Those jars aren't that big. Besides, how scary can a jar collector be?"

"That's what I wanted to hear." Alboort clicked the button, and the image switched to the picture of Shivers. "Now, I sort of have a need to make amends, but it's for more than one reason."

Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "Does this have anything to do with that love letter trick you were talking about earlier?"

"Ooh. A fake love letter?" Captain Syrup grinned. "I didn't think you were that devious, Alboort."

"Yes, well, that's not the point." Alboort tugged nervously on his bowtie. "You see, the point is that, as butler, Shivers holds keys to just about every room in the mansion. Aside from that, I'm going to need his help to summon someone very important. However, I can't get in, as long as Jarvis is out there."

"So who's turn will it be to go in the mansion after you?" Waluigi cast a sidelong glance at Star-Krossed. "I don't think we can trust this gluttonous terror in there." He gestured to his other side. "And Captain Syrup still doesn't have a way to fight ghosts."

"I think we can fix that easily enough." Alboort clicked the button, and Professor E. Gadd's picture was presented next. "However, we'll need you to go and see the professor beforehand. He's a good friend of Luigi's, and I'm sure he'll help out anyone trying to save him."

"Sounds easy enough." Waluigi rubbed his chin. "Almost too easy."

"You don't need to worry about that right now." Alboort turned to Ashley. "It's your turned to be worried."

Ashley smirked. "Who's worried?"

The scarlet-clad witch stepped out of the mausoleum and stretched, smiling up at the moon. "Well, well, well. This really does feel like home. At least, like home back in Diamond City." She turned to Red. "Isn't that right?"

"Yeah. Like home." Red's teeth were chattering as he looked around the graveyard.

Ashley rolled her eyes and held out her hand. "Just get up here."

"Okay. Yeah." Red jumped up and turned into Ashley's magic staff. He landed snugly in the witch's hand.

Ashley used her free hand to pull out her vibrating Thieftech. "So, what's the deal with this Jarvis guy? Do I just bust up pots and smash him on the head as soon as he comes out?"

"Not exactly." Alboort tapped a few keys. "You see, Jarvis actually lives inside his jar collection."

"What?" Ashley crossed her arms, shaking her head. "What sort of idiot lives inside of jars."

"Not entirely sure." Alboort shrugged. "You have to realize that the residents of the mansion pretty much all died immediately alongside each other. The first thing I can really remember is that he started rejoicing as soon as he realized he could fit comfortably into a jar."

"Okay." Ashley uncrossed her arms and twirled her staff in one hand. "So what exactly do I do."

"Well, you pretty much had the right idea. There's just a few things I need to clear up." Alboort clicked on his mouse and adjusted his glasses. "Breaking jars would be the right way to start this, and Jarvis should appear soon enough. I'm sure he has a strong connection with his jars. However, what you need to do after he arrives is make him freeze."

"Seems that new ice spell of mine was nice investment." Ashley took a firm grim of her staff, stopping its spin. "So do you just want me to smash him into a billion pieces, once he's an ice cube?"

Alboort shook his head. "Not at all. Once you've died, it's tough to die a second time." He tapped a few more keys. "The ice will break, but he'll just speed to his jars and report us immediately. No, you'll need to bring him back to the hideout. I'm sure a coffin could hold him just fine."

"Yeah. That makes a whole lot of sense." Ashley rolled her eyes. "However, I suppose I shouldn't really argue. I've dealt with plenty of skeletons, but not a whole lot of ghosts." She snapped her Thieftech shut and placed it in her pocket. She looked both ways before running through the headstones.

Soon, the young witch stopped, seeing her first jar. She crossed her arms as she studied her target. "Doesn't look like much. Shouldn't take much more than a magic blast or a short toss to break it."

Red appeared in the crystal end of the staff. "Do whatever you like, but I really hope you don't run into any ghosts."

"Just calm down, Red. Nothing out here could possibly be scarier than us."

"I hope you're right, Ashley. I really hope you're right." Red disappeared from the gem.

Sighing with exasperation at her familiar, Ashley turned her attention back to the jar. She spun her staff, and a massive blast or red and purple energy surged towards the jar, shattering it. She walked over to where it had been and looked around. The two jars on either side were a fair distance away, but no more than thirty feet away. She raised her staff again, and blew apart the jar to her left.

"Hmm. Still no ghosts." Ashley placed her hands on her hips as she thought. "I already broke some of the jars." She raised her staff up in the air. "I guess I better just keep smashing!"

The teenage witch ran around the mansion to find a few more fresh jars. She picked up one with a stream of magic and threw it into the distance. A couple of magic blasts took out two more jars.

"Ack! What in the name o' corned beef and cabbage is going on out here!" A red mist began to ascend out of a distant jar and shaped itself into a rotund head with plump lips. He looked around until he saw Ashley. He swirled out of the jar, revealing the rest of his body to be nothing more than a short, ghostly tail. He floated over to the trespasser and glared at her. "Are ye the one destroying me jars, lass?"

"What if I am?" Ashley glared back at the ghost even more viciously. "Think you can take me on?"

Though he evidently flinched, the red ghost furrowed his brow. "I, Jarvis, am a whole lot more scary than ye're giving me credit for, lass." His expression softened. "However, maybe we can settle the payment for your little destruction spree another way."

Really?" Ashley shifted her weight between feet, raising an eyebrow. "And just what do you propose?"

"Oh, hardly more than a trifle. A game, really." Jarvis chuckled. "You see, I very much like games, almost as much as I like jars." He turned around and gestured at the jar that he had just left. "I'm just going to pop up out o' these jars, and if ye can blast me with ice seven out o' ten times, then ye win, and I'll do nothing to ye. If ye lose, though, the consequences for ye will be quite dire indeed."

"What do you think, Red," Ashley muttered to her staff.

"I don't know, Ashley," Red whispered back as he appeared in the crystal. "Alboort really made it a point to not let this guy back near any jars."

Ashley nodded. "My thoughts exactly."

"What was that, lass?" Jarvis turned around, but not quick enough to catch Red, before the familiar disappeared.

"I was just thinking to myself." Ashley grinned viciously. "However, your game isn't much of a challenge."

Jarvis's face lit up with glee. "Oh, ye'd be surprised just how hard this game can be."

"How many jars are there?"

"What?" Jarvis blinked expectantly.

"How many jars are there left?" Ashley asked as innocently as possible. "It'd be a lot more fair, if you told me how many jars were left, so I could guess where you'd pop up next."

Frowning slightly, Jarvis began murmuring to himself. After a moment, he smiled again. "Okay. It couldn't hurt anything." He rolled his eyes back to think. "Let's see, there were fifteen jars out here, but I think ye broke five of them, so there should be about ten left."

"All right, let's play." Ashley's face became determined.

"Very well, lass." Jarvis tensed himself. "Ready, set-"

"GO!" A light blue beam shot out of Ashley's staff and froze the red ghost in a heavy chunk of ice. The witch used her staff to pick up the giant ice cube and threw it into the distance. She turned back to the jar at the other end of the wall and ran for it. With a flick of her wrist, she blasted the jar to smithereens and kept running around the corner.

Once she had rounded the corner, Ashley just continued to volley blasts of magic, simply hoping they'd hit. Much to her desires, she could hear the shattering of several more clay jars. However, the falling shards weren't what caught her attention. It was the panting.

Turning around, Ashley could see a purple-faced Jarvis trying to catch up with her. It was evident that he wasn't used to moving a whole lot, for his breath was horribly haggard.

Ashley just simply flicked another blue beam in the ghost's direction. She ran over, lugged him into the air with her magic, and sent him flying off again.

"Okay, so let's see. I think I just destroyed another four jars, so that should only be six left." Ashley took a firm grip on her staff, and her smile grew. "Let's get this finished up." She turned and continued around the old building.

Once again, after she had blown up a few more jars, Ashley had to freeze Jarvis in his tracks. Given how she only had two or three more jars to go, though, she decided to just let him sit there to defrost. She turned around, shot a magic blast at two more, and continued on, humming to herself, even.

A loud cracking behind the witch signaled that the ghost behind her wasn't exactly pleased at watching his collection go up in smoke, so she sped up a bit.

The last jar was just around the next corner. Ashley could hear the panting ghost just at her heels, but she did nothing about him. She just shot a stream of magic out, caught the last jar in it, and threw the jar to who knows where.

"NO!" Jarvis stared at the jar pathetically as the final jar whirled out of sight. He turned to his opponent and puffed up. "Why would ye do that, lass? Why?"

"Why not?" Ashley spun one of her fingernails in one of her ponytails. "Let's face it. There's no way you can fight me."

A defeated expression crossed Jarvis's face as his simple head-like frame slumped. "It just isn't right o' ye to bust up a guy's collection."

"Whatever." Ashley blasted the red ghost again with an icy beam, sealing him in ice. She proceeded to use her staff to raise him up in the air and carried him along as she walked towards the hideout.

As Ashley approached the old mausoleum, she was surprised to see Alboort waiting outside. "What's the matter? Did you honestly think thatI couldn't handle this guy by myself."

Alboort shook his head. "I was just waiting for my go." He pulled his glasses off and wiped them. "I will admit that it took you longer than I anticipated."

"I was just making sure that I did my job right." Ashley gestured to the frozen Jarvis. "So what do I do with this guy?"

Alboort gestured towards the door. "There is a sizable urn in the mausoleum I'm sure he'd like. Especially after whatever trauma you put him through."

"Okay. Sounds good." Ashley hauled her catch towards the door, and opened the mausoleum up to enter.

_Mission Complete_

_signed,_

_-Ashley and Red_

Okay, just so everyone realizes, the point of this mission is to keep Jarvis away from the jars, not to play his little minigame from Luigi's mansion. He was the security system/alarm person, after all.

Anyways, more happy haunts and ghostly encounters to come, so stay tune.

Please, enjoy and review.


	13. Chapter 2 Part 3

Welcome back, boos and ghouls. It's time to start some real ghostly mischief as ghost meets ghost in this curious level.

Now, before I get started, I want to acknowledge that this chapter is based more on conversation than actual fighting or skill or anything. Without an immediate computer, Alboort really doesn't have that much on hand to do. Besides, he doesn't want to arouse suspicion yet with King Boo, so no point in violence between him and the other ghosts for now.

Chapter 2.3: Light My Fire

Alboort swallowed lightly as he looked over at the mansion. "Let's get this over with." He pulled out his Thieftech and flipped it open, revealing a capless Waluigi. "Okay, Waluigi. You ready at the computer?"

"Yeah. I'm ready." Waluigi scowled as he fiddled with something off screen. Likely a satellite dish. "I still don't see why you don't let Maple deal with this stuff, though. She's a lot better with electronics than me."  
"I'm not trusting that pirate with my computer!" Alboort pushed his glasses back up his face and cleared his throat. "Besides, if anything goes wrong, I think Ashley would be a little more practical for a rescue around here."  
"What about Star-Krossed?" Waluigi snickered.  
"Um, no." Alboort swallowed lightly. "I would prefer being beat up by ghosts than the possibility of being eaten."

"Good point." Waluigi folded his arms as he stared from the screen. "So, what exactly are you going to do now?" He reached up and patted his head. "And why did you need to take my cap?"

"I have my reasons for that, and I'll explain them later." He looked between the mansion and his Thieftech. "Before that, though, I think I'm going to have to face my past a bit."

"Like something from when you were alive?" Waluigi raised a curious eyebrow. "Mind filling me in?"

"No, not from when I was alive! Sheesh!" Alboort shook his head. "Why is everyone so enthusiastic to learn about that stuff?"

"Oh, so this is about that love letter thing?" Waluigi smirked. "Sounds like you'll have your work cut out from the beginning."

"Don't I know it." Alboort placed a hand on his forehead. "I'm just glad the portrait ghosts won't attack without being provoked."

"Would revealing a fake love letter count as provocation?"

Alboort bobbed sharply in the air, looking around. He glared back at his Thieftech. "Now don't go freaking me out like that, Waluigi! I wasn't really that greatly enthused with coming back here in the first place."

"All right. All right." Waluigi held his hands up defensively. "I was just asking."

"Well, thanks for the concern." Alboort furrowed his brow. "However, I'm afraid that there isn't much more you can do for me than keep Ashley ready for the rescue."

"Gotcha!" Waluigi gave Alboort a wink and a thumbs up, before disappearing from the screen.

Alboort swallowed lightly as he looked back up at the mansion. He could feel nonexistent goosebumps running up the back of his head as he drifted towards it. "Well, I guess it's time to face the music."

The venture up to the front doors was rather uneventful, but as soon as the doors were opened, the creepiness began. The dimly lit foyer would have been enough to scare most away from even stepping in, but Alboort floated in, nonetheless.

"It certainly is a good thing that, as a ghost, I can naturally see in the dark." He laughed nervously to try to comfort himself. "Otherwise, I'd be even blinder than usual."

Suddenly, orange smoke gather together as a new ghost joined the room. Arms sprouted out of its sides as it took on a more traditional ghost shape than a Boo. It laughed as it turned to Alboort.

Alboort held his arms up as a shield as the ghost appeared, screaming a little.

"Boy, you Boos really are shy." The orange ghost laughed loudly. "Sorry about scaring ya, there, little buddy. It's not often that someone actually uses the front doors." His loud belly laugh echoed throughout the rotting foyer.

_Oh, right._ Alboort lowered his hands, and he stared at the laughing ghost. _He's not going to attack another ghost. Still, how should I approach this? Should I greet him, keep cowering, or start shouting at him?_ He didn't move much more, hoping not to excite the orange ghost's attention. _Well, I'm pretty sure yelling at him wouldn't do me any good, but he'll probably just keep pestering me, if I don't say anything._ He swallowed and stuck out a hand. "Hi. I'm kind of new around here."

"Really?" The orange ghost looked bewildered but soon bonked himself on the head. "Ah. Understandable enough. Sorry, but ya know how it is. Ya've seen one Boo, ya've seen 'em all."

"I suppose the same could be said about all ghosts." Alboort tried to laugh alongside the other ghost, but he really felt weird about it.  
"True, true." The ghost continued his low chuckle, finally accepting Alboort's hand to shake. "That is, until ya get to the portrait ghosts." He laughed harder. "Now there's a bunch of loons for ya! Especially that Shivers guy. Does nothing but pace up and down the hall." He spun a finger by his head. "Really. Not much of a butler, is he?"

"Shivers!" Alboort floated over to the ghost and shook his softly by the shoulders. "You know where Shivers is? Tell me! I need to talk to him!"

"Woah. Woah. Calm down there, little buddy." The ghost pushed himself away from Alboort. "Well, so much for being shy." He took hold of his chin and rubbed it. "Let's see. He's always outside the conservatory, but this place seems to rearrange itself everyday." He used his other hand to scratch his head. "I think the conservatory's up on the second floor now." He pointed at the door to the right of the foyer stairs. "I believe he should be somewhere down that hallway, but I ain't making any promises."

"Thank you." Alboort floated past the ghosts and towards the stairs.

"Hey, don't be a stranger." The orange ghost waved after the Boo. "But you shouldn't go grabbing people, either, especially those Grabbing Ghosts. They can get really competitive about that sort of stuff."

"Thanks for the tip!" Alboort rolled his eyes. _I didn't even mean to grab you!_  
The hallway past the door that had be indicated was still dim, but moonlight came through the windows, making it much brighter than the closed in foyer. The Boo with glasses slowly bobbed his way down the hall, keeping an eye out for any other ghosts. Certainly, there were no immediate threats, but he still didn't want to get caught off guard. _Ugh! Grabbing ghosts, though, I remember those guys. Really, really annoying._

A golden glint added further illumination to the hall, as a golden candlestick came gliding down the hall. At least, it looked to be gliding by itself, until its holder came out of the shadows. He was a stately, pale blue man with well pronounced facial features and wearing a very proud suit.

_Okay, here we go._ Alboort floated towards the candle holder, swallowing back his nervousness. He held up a hand to flag down the new ghost.

The butler ghost paused as he looked down at the Boo. "Oh my!" He stared down his long nose and took hold of his elongated chin. "I say, you seem familiar for some reason."

Well, now we're here. Alboort chuckled quietly. _Now, how should I approach this? I could try to act like I'm teamed up with King Boo. Or maybe I should tell him who I really am. Then again, it might be best to just play dumb._ He looked up at the long nose on Shivers's face._ Well, being a nice guy seemed to have worked with that ghost in the foyer. It couldn't hurt to try it here._ He held out his hand. "Hey, Shivers," he winced, "it's me, Alboort."

"Alboort?" The butler stooped down to look at the Boo, giving a pronounced sniff. "Ah, yes, I remember you. It's been a while, but I do greatly remember what a trouble-making ghost you are. Sticking spiders in the laundry. Hiding ghost mice on lidded dishes in the refrigerator. I am most certain that, as soon as I find it, you will not be mentioned anywhere in the master's will."

"Yeah. Yeah. I was kind of stupid back then." Alboort raised a knowing finger. "At least I'm not as bad as King Boo, though. Right?"

"Not nearly half as bad, I will admit." Shivers shuddered. "King Boo and his boys won't give me a moment's peace now. Makes it very difficult to clean."

"Really?" Alboort, realizing he wasn't getting a handshake, poked his two ghostly hands together. "Is that all that's keeping you from peace?"

"Well, as the butler, I must say that it is distressing to not be able to clean." He sighed, taking a firmer grip on his candlestick, and turned to the not too far away double doors. "But as a lover, I admit that it is harder for me to overcome my unrequited love." He clutched the part of his chest that should have been over his heart. "Oh, woe is me! The sweet Melody does nothing but scoff in my direction." His face became even more somber. "And I thought things were going so swimmingly before."

"Riiiiight." Alboort pushed his glasses up, plastering a huge grin on his face. Well, that came up a lot sooner than I had anticipated. How should I tell him, though. Should I just offer him my pity, or maybe try to lie about that dumb letter. I'm really not sure if telling the truth would be a very good idea. He could feel a lump swelling in his throat, like a death threat from his conscience. Then again, honesty is the best policy. He opened his mouth wide to speak.

"I mean there was that love letter so long ago." Shivers's green eyes began to turn a more aqua color. "Oh, should I recite it to you!"

"SHIVERS! I WAS THE ONE WHO SENT YOU THAT STUPID LOVE LETTER AS A JOKE!" Alboort quickly slammed his hands over his mouth and gasped sharply. When no shouting came his direction, though, he thought it safe to continue. "I guess I spent too much time with Henry and Orville."

"Oh." Shivers's face fell. "Oh." His ghostly tail curled under him as his face fell. "I see." His empty candlestick fell to the floor as he covered his face. "I should have known. I'm such a fool. What sort of beauty like the amazing Melody would care for an old specter like me?" He threw his hands up in the air in defeat. "Just what could I offer her!"  
_Okay. I think I would have preferred it, if he had threatened to beat me to a pulp._ Alboort tapped the side of his head. Oh, how am I going to fix this. He chewed on his giant tongue as he thought._ I suppose I could talk to Melody, but that might cause only more problems. Maybe a pep talk would be better? Or maybe I should stop, before I cause any more damage._ He looked at the pitiful portrait ghost in front of him. _Something tells me that leaving this mess alone won't solve the problem._ He sighed. "Is there anything I can do for you, Shivers?" He waited. "Shivers?"

The phantom butler simply stayed on the ground, unmoving.

"Uh oh." Alboort edged around the collapsed ghost to the double doors. "Okay, well, if you're curious, I'm going in to talk to Melody for you now." Without receiving an answer, he unceremoniously floated through the doors.

The conservatory was not full of plants, as one might guess by the name, but instruments. Drums, violins, a harp, and others were strewn across the floor and furniture. A grand piano stood at the far end of the room.

"Let's see. How do you summon Melody again?" Alboort looked around at the instruments again. "Oh yeah. That's right." He floated over and stroked the strings of the harp, and it began to play. He touched the drum, and the drumsticks began flying arounf, making their beat-by-beat music. Touching the violins' bows, the guitar strings, and the various woodwinds, until a whole ghostly cacophony was playing.

Suddenly, another tune began playing. It played with the other instruments, but seemed to really fill it out.

"Oh, I know this one!" Alboort tapped his head again. _Let's see, though. Is it Mario, Link, or Kirby's theme song? Oh, it's so embarrassing how I can't remember which one goes to who._

Alboort's thought process was stopped momentarily as a beautiful blond woman with pale blue skin and glowing, yellow eyes appeared by the piano. She was playing the theme song on the grand piano, her head swinging lavishly as she played the notes.

Testing his luck, Alboort floated among the self-playing instruments until he was really close to the piano. He waited quietly as the song finished.

After the final note, the ghostly young woman let go of the keys and span around on her stool, clapping her hands. "Oh, bravo! Very good. What a wonderful rhythm." She stopped her spinning, so she was facing Alboort. "Now, tell me what you thought of my music? Does it make you think of a plucky young plumber, a strong warrior, or a cute little glutton?"

Alboort let the tune run through his head again. "Um, well." He tapped his head again. "I would have to say the song sounded rather adventurous so... the warrior?"

"Ah-ha. Very well done!" Melody covered her mouth with the back of her hand as she laughed triumphantly. "Now, how would you like to play with my music sheets?"

Alboort was about to protest, but he found that the sheets flew off the shelf too fast. He did the only thing he could think off on the spot, pulling out a bomb and ducking for cover.

In a flash of gunpowder and fire, the remaining shreds of burning paper fell helplessly to the floor.

Melody's face was half black as she turned to face the Boo. Her brow furrowed, and her eyes glowed ominously. She rose from her stool.

_Well, that figures. I knew Melody had a bit of a temper._ Alboort pulled nervously on his bowtie. _Now, I should probably call for backup, but maybe I can talk her down from this rage._ He pushed his glasses up again and floated from behind his defensive drums. "Wait. Wait. Melody! I'm sorry, but I didn't come in here to play."

"Oh, really?" Melody rolled up one of her singed sleeves, still pressing forward.

"No. No." Alboort gestured to the door. "I came in here to talk to you about Shivers."

Melody stopped in her nonexistent tracks. "Shivers?" She pointed over her shoulder with her thumb. "You mean that creepy, old guy who always stalks up and down the hallway in front of the conservatory all the time?"

"Um, yeah." Alboort's gaze shifted ffrom Melody to the double doors and back again. "When you say it like that, it does make him sound pretty creepy."

"And isn't it wonderful?" Melody clasped her hands together. "Certainly a much better haunting tactic than anything Uncle Grimly tries." She rolled her eyes. "However, as spooky as it makes him, he doesn't really seem to follow through with scaring."

Alboort stared blankly at Melody for a moment before his eyebrows raised in realization. Oh, duh! Ghost logic! He looked up at Melody again. "And what do you mean by that?"

"Well, it's not like he's snuck up on me, yelled at anyone, or really tried to scare anyone, aside from his constant wandering." Melody placed her hands on her hips. "Of course, I guess scaring isn't everything. Does he like music?"

"I guess so." Alboort shrugged. "I can't think of any other reason he would spend so much time just outside this room."

"Good point." Melody shifted her weight. "How about video games."

"Not sure." Alboort scratched the back of his head. _Well, this is going a lot better than I expected. However, I don't think this is going anywhere. Maybe I should go get Shivers._ He held his chin. _Then again, I might try to learn more about this first. Should I stay or go? Stay or go?_ Alboort's gaze never left Melody, but he cleared his throat. "However, certainly there must be something more particular you'd like to hear about him?"

"Well..." Melody hummed to herself for a moment. "I have to say that I have heard him muttering about some sort of heated passion or whatever." She laughed at this comment. "Of course, everyone knows he's afraid of fire."

"Right." Alboort gestured awkwardly with his hands. "So your asking...?"

Melody flipped her hair and glared down at the Boo. "Get Shivers to show me some of this heated passion! That's what I want."

Alboort's eyebrows flew to the top of his head. "Okay. Let me see what I can do." He floated back to the doors and out into the hallway.

Shivers was still stooped on the ground.

"Oh brother! What did I get myself into?" Alboort shook his head. The candlestick immediately caught his attention. "However, maybe I could offer some heated passion of my own." He pulled a bomb out of his pocket and placed it beside Shivers. He floated down the hall a bit, before activating the bomb.

After the explosion, the butler looked completely unphased. That is, until he looked at the blazing candle in his hand. "Fire!" He hopped out of his sitting position and began to float quickly down the hall.

"No. No! He's going the wrong way!" Alboort sped down the hall as well. He made it in front of Shivers and floated down even further before placing another bomb on the ground. He blasted it just before Shivers reached the position.

"Fire!" The ghostly butler turned tail and flew back in the other direction.

"Now, here we go!" Alboort floated after the butler as well, placing a bomb and detonating it whenever it looked like his victim was going to make a wrong turn or slowing down. He didn't have to wait long to get back to where they started, but he did notice one possible error. "Oh, no you don't!" Alboort raced past Shivers and placed a final bomb just past the double doors. He hopped back a distance, and pulled out the bomb's trigger.

The final explosion startled Shivers so much, that the only logical answer was for him to leave the hall. He burst through the double doors, screaming his head off.

After he heard a crash and a scream, Alboort cringed. He floated back into the conservatory to see that Shivers, in his panic, had actually crashed into Melody, toppling them both over the piano stool. He held his breath and covered his eyes.

Shivers was also breathless as he stood up. His candle was still lit, but that's not where his eyes were focused. Rather, he was looking down at Melody. "FIRE!"

"Oh please." Melody shook her head as she stood up. "You mean to tell me that you're still scared of fire?" She rolled her pupil-less eyes. "How pathetic."

"Fire! Fire!" Shivers was pointing at Melody.

"Oh, cute. Let's play caveman." Melody shook her head in disbelief. "Really, what is that? Some sort of lame way of calling me hot?"

Alboort pointed at Melody as well. "No, Melody, your hair's on fire!"

"What are you-" Melody stopped and sniffed. The left side of her head had been lit by Shivers's candle. She began to scream horrendously.

Shivers placed his candle down on the piano and began clapping both his hands over the flaming part of Melody's hair. His sleeves began to catch, but he didn't pay any attention to this as he pulled his hands over the newly blackened hair, soon leaving it just a smoldering patch of black amongst the rest of the golden blond hair.

Melody began to calm down as she felt the crisped hair was no longer ablaze. She panted heavily as she turned to look at Shivers. "What was that?"

"Please. I beg your forgiveness, Miss Melody." Shivers patted his sleeves to rid himself of a few last embers. "I really have no idea what happened, but... uh..." He somberly picked up his candle and began floating away from the piano. "I'll just be going now."  
Melody grabbed the ghostly butler by the shoulder and stared him in the eyes. "You know, I've never had a scare like that all my afterlife." She smiled as she took hold of her, now blackened, hair. "And I don't think things tend to get much more heated than what just happened." She pointed to the candle in the butler's hand. "Besides, candles and pianos make a wonderful combination."

Shivers's blue cheeks began to grow pink as his eyes widened.

Alboort cleared his throat. "Um, okay. Before you two start making beautiful music together, could I get some assistance."

Turning to look at the Boo, Shivers bowed dramatically. "Of course, my good sir. For nearly scaring me into a second death and helping me achieve something I could have never done on my own, I would be honored to do any kindness for you."

"Well, thank you." Alboort's eyebrows raised at how Shivers was treating him. "All I really need is the light of your candle to help summon Madame Clairvoya."

"That's all?" Shivers picked up a violin and lodged his candle into the head of it. "Then let me be your light."

"Trust me." Melody pointed to the black half of her head. "He really lit my fire."

"Right." Alboort began to feel nervous again.

"Follow me, Alboort." Shivers drew a bow across the violin and played gently. "Let us depart into the night." He floated out of the double doors.

Alboort followed the ghostly butler down the hall and past several turns. They arrived at a more ornate pair of double doors with crystal doorknobs.

"Just give me a moment." Shivers stopped playing his violin and pulled a set of keys out of his pocket. "I should have us in just as soon as I find the right key."

"Fine with me." Alboort pulled out his Thieftech and opened it. "Okay, Waluigi, I just need to make one more stop, and I'll be back."

"What do you need to do?" Waluigi folded his fingers together. "Any other old friends you want to catch up on?"

"No." Alboort shook his head. "I just need to call on Madame Clairvoya for a few minutes."

"Madame Clairvoya?" Waluigi snorted a laugh. "Getting your fortune told, are you?"

"Exaclty." Alboort laughed back at Waluigi. "Sure, she can only predict things up to forty-nine days into the future, but I don't plan on doing these rescues any longer than a month."

"Me neither." Waluigi leaned back in his chair. "However, I don't think you'll need much help from here."

"Nope. Not really." Alboort looked up from his Thieftech. "Okay. I have to go now. Later." He closed his Thieftech and followed Shivers into the unusual room.

The butler wasted no time as he approached the table in the middle of the room. He placed his candle right next to the crystal ball, causing it to give of a soft glow.

Soon, a mist appeared around the crystal ball, settling itself onto one of the cushions set around the table in order to form a well-dressed medium. "Who comes to call on the great powers of Madame Clairvoya?"

"Young Alboort, Madame." Shivers gestured to the bespectacled Boo. "He has come back for some reason."

"To see me?" Madame Clairvoya smiled. "Let him in. Let him in."

Alboort swallowed as he floated towards the table. It didn't help matters that Shivers was leaving the room at the same time.

"Come to Madame Clairvoya," the medium commanded. "There are few places safer this night, especially as King Boo has another victim."

"Yes, about that. We're going to try to save him." He paused. "Um, well, me and my friends, that is." He pulled out a purple cap, a purple bandanna, and a feathery, reddish orange tiara. He was about to take his glasses off, too, but was stopped by a blue hand with thin fingers.

"Madame Claivoya only reads the fortunes of dropped items." She smiled. "And I don't think you want to drop those."

"Probably a good point." Alboort replaced his glasses.

Picking up the purple cap, Madame Clairvoya placed it on her crystal ball and studied it a moment. "Well now. Whoever owns this hat is in for quite a few surprises in the near future." She held her hands over it and waited. "I sense many tests, many friends, but also a traitor."

"A traitor?"

"Do not interrupt Madame Clairvoya while she is working!" The medium returned to the cap. "I see him walking amongst the dead. Definitely not a good sign."

Alboort could feel himself tense. "Okay. Um, speaking of the dead, aren't you supposed to call on the dark spirits or something for these predictions?"

"How innocent this Boo is. Certainly not a member of King Boo's gang. That is all for the show to impress the living." Madame Clairvoya removed the cap and set the bandanna in its place. "Ah. Fortune is in this person's future. Diamonds, especially. Coins and diamonds." She paused. "And great power. I don't understand what it is yet, but she will be given great power." Her eyes narrow. "And what's this." Her eyes flashed open, revealing the very lack of pupils in her misty eyes. "Catching a falling star!"

"Is that good or bad?" Alboort could feel sweat on his brow.

"Fortunate, yes." Madame Clairvoya's eyes narrowed. "But often with a steep price attached. Perhaps even losing her heart in the process." She smiled as she switched the bandanna for the tiara. "However, it should not be a critical problem." She looked into her crystal ball again. She blanched, she pale skin whitening. She threw the tiara at Alboort. "Get out!"

"Wha-"

"GET OUT!" Madame Clairvoya pointed at the tiara menacingly. "Get that wretched thing away from me. Get it away!" She pounced over the table at Alboort.

The Boo grabbed the other items and jumped from his spot. He rushed out of the door, the medium slamming it behind him. After a moment of catching his breath, he looked back at the door. "Well, that wasn't what I was expecting." He turned and floated down the hall.

_Mission Complete,_

_Signed,_

_-Alboort_

Well, well, well. Some possible foreshadowing for our heroes, and another mission resolved.

I certainly hope that the tension isn't killing anyone. The suspense just might be enough.

Anyways, there is so much of the story left, but I love leaving you all to die for more as you wait.

Please, enjoy and review.


	14. Chapter 2 Part 4

Warning! Imagination is needed for this chapter. I'm sorry, but these skill-based events can get tedious to describe in obsessive detail, so I try to keep them simple.

Chapter 2.4: Seeing the Doctor

Waluigi stepped out of the mausoleum and looked around. He frowned as he looked around. After a minute, he pulled out his Theiftech and flipped in open. "Okay, Alboort, what do you want me to do again?"

"First, reach your destination point for the job, and then I'll tell you." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "It'll help to describe the job better, if I have the visual aids to go with it."

"I guess that makes sense." Waluigi turned Alboort off from the screen and placed the Thieftech over his eye. He looked around until he saw a violet marker high in the air. He followed the destination arrow until he was certain of the place. Of course, it would happen to be on the other side of the mansion. He sighed. "Well, I'm sure as blazes not taking the time to go around this blasted mansion!"  
With a flick of his hand, Waluigi had snatched out a piece of Vampire Candy. With another swift gesture, the candy was in his mouth, and he swallowed. Taking vampire form, he quickly ran over to the mansion and zoomed up a couple of levels. He had to restock his vampire energy as the candy wore off, but that was enough to get him up the next two flights. He ignored it as he transformed back into a human, running the length of the roof in the direction of his appointed destination. He jumped off of the roof and swam towards the ground.

As Waluigi landed, he ran forward a little more. He flicked his Thieftech open again and looked into it. "Okay, Alboort, you mind telling me what you're planning?"

"It's not really too much." Alboort tugged on his bowtie. "I hope."  
"You hope?" Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "What, exactly, is that supposed to mean?"

"Not much, not much." Alboort held his hands up defensively. "I mean, all I really want you to do is go see Professor E. Gadd. It really shouldn't be all that much."  
"I get that, Alboort." Waluigi tapped his foot as he looked into the might air. "Remind me again why I need to go see this egghead. He didn't really look like anyone I could take seriously. I mean, he's probably shorter than you are, and, no offense, but Boos are short."

"Yeah. We are pretty short." Alboort tapped several keys. "And I really don't blame you for not taking Professor E. Gadd seriously. I don't take him seriously. Ghosts, in general, don't take him very seriously." He chuckled. "And he calls himself a great ghost hunter."

"Yeah. Just... yeah." Waluigi scratched his chin. "So then, why are you sending me to go see him?"

"Professor E. Gadd might be rather dense, but he can invent quite a few useful devices. We're looking for something very special to help us." Alboort nodded to himself. "You see, the professor really knows how to make some real anti-ghost technology, including turning them into corporeal paintings and completely incapacitating them."  
"Well, now that's what I'm talking about." Waluigi nodded back to Alboort. "Maybe this won't be as much of a waste as I thought."  
"Yeah. There are just two little problems." Alboort grinned nervously.

"Little problems?" Waluigi groaned. "Knowing you, there's no such thing as a 'little' problem."

"True." Alboort tapped some more keys. "You see, over his many years of ghost hunting, E. Gadd has become a little bit paranoid. And by that, I mean that he's so paranoid that his defenses are overkill."

Waluigi rolled his eyes. "Please, go on."

"You'll see how serious this gets once you start heading down the path to his lab. It's really not something to laugh at." Alboort's brow furrowed. "Odds are, you won't make it through alive."

"What?"

"Oh, calm down, will you." Alboort sighed. "You see, you're just going to have to make serious use of the Vampire Candy to get through the chaos." He clicked on his mouse. "Of course, it's not just that simple. You're going to have to be a human to get through some of the obstacles. I was serious about the anti-ghost technology."

"Well, this should be fun." Waluigi gagged on his own words.

"Look, we're going to need the Poltergust, so it'd be best, if you just decided to get this done with." Alboort's gaze shifted from the screen. "We're eating up moonlight."  
"Good point." With a few swift movements, Waluigi had put his Thieftech away. He hurried his way down the path.

Aside from spooky trees, and some eerie fog, Waluigi didn't see anything particularly troubling about the path. Fortunately, his feet were doing plenty of feeling for him.

"Woah!" The purple-clad man moved his foot back and looked down a deep gorge. He took a moment to study it before simply triple-jumping into the air and swimming the rest of the way across. He swallowed as he looked down, but he safely landed on the other side. "That was close." He wiped his brow as he walked away from the first obstacle.

It was only a few steps, before a wall smashed Waluigi's nose flat against his face. He shook his head, correcting his profile. He looked straight up to see that the height of the wall was rather difficulty to see, he was so close. He pulled out a Vampire Candy and swallowed it. With a quintuple-jump, he landed on the top of the wall safely. As he landed, though, he found that a green, transparent wall stood on top of the stone one. He reached a hand out carefully.

"Yah!" Vampire Waluigi pulled his smoking hand back from the wall. In a moment, he changed back to normal. He looked between the strange wall and his hand. "I really hope that this is just one of those anti-ghost defenses Alboort was talking about." He reached out again, feeling only a faint tickle as he passed through the wall. He jumped down the other side and looked around. "This could just be a little tricky."

In front of Waluigi stood massive walls of barbwire, rings of the green wall, and a maze of stone paths going through a mess of holes and spiked pillars.

Letting go of a loud breath, he walked over to the first opening to the path. He swallowed as he looked down the trenches around the stone path. "I swear, if it wasn't for the fact that Alboort was already dead, I'd be pretty darn tempted to kill him, as soon as I get back to the hideout."

With careful steps, he passed through the first green wall and wound his way around, needing to jump over a few smaller walls. He quietly slipped through the second green wall, but the winding path led him back out of it shortly after. He groaned as he was forced to swallow Vampire Candy after Vampire Candy to get over the higher walls, only to swim his way over smaller walls and stop before he hit a green wall.

Finally, Waluigi found his way back through the second green wall again, and he smiled as he passed only, only to stop immediately.

"Oh no!" He looked down either way to see that the walls that now blocked his path even had green walls over them. "Come on! Seriously!"

Tapping his foot, Waluigi waited patiently for a plan. "Looks like I'm really going to have to time this right."

With another candy, Waluigi paced his way lazily over to the first wall. Waiting a few more seconds, he soon jumped up to perform his vampiric ascent, but he soon found himself human again. "Nice!" He passed through the green wall, just skimming the wall, before falling quickly to the stone path. He landed hard, but he quickly ran over to the next wall. He moaned as he patiently waited on his next candy, risking as close as he guessed to get past the next wall combination. The gaps on either side of him made it impossible to progress sideways, which really got on his nerves as he got caught as a human only halfway up the wall a couple of times. He growled furiously as he finally got over the wall again. He slapped his hand over his face as he saw another wall combination in front of him. "Strike that! I'm going to kill the professor, when I get there."

The third wall proved less irritating to get over, but that was only after the practice from the previous walls.

Thanking hiss lucky star and any star that might have been listening, Waluigi found his way in the maze through the third green wall and to solid ground. He stomped down a couple of times, making sure the ground was stable, but a scream caught in his throat as he looked up again. What seemed to be a wraparound wall loomed him. The only possible entrance as far as the thin man could see was a small, green circle near the top.

Muttering and murmuring, growling and gritting his teeth, the tall thief pulled out what he hoped would be his last candy for the night. He hurriedly counted on his fingers before rising high in the air. He pressed against the wall until he came across the green circle. He got shocked a bit, but he quickly reverted to human form again and passed through the small entrance.

Landing firmly on the ground again, Waluigi crossed his arms. He glared around the inside of the wall, gritting his teeth. All he saw was a final green wall surrounding a small cottage. Still scowling, he walked over and passed through the final wall. He pounded on the door, busting it in with his foot, before any possible chance for an answer.

"Oh my!" A little old man with only a tuft of white hair on his head ran over to the broken door. "Oh my! Oh my! Who are you?"

Waluigi grabbed the little man my the front of his jacket and hauled him to eye level. "I'm the guy that just passed through your irritating little arcade game of a security system just to grab some sort of anti-ghost weapon! That's who I am!"  
"Oh my goodness." Professor E. Gadd adjusted his glasses. "I wasn't expecting any human companionship tonight. Terrible business, I'm afraid. I never expected the portrait ghosts to get out, let alone so soon. And I do fear that King Boo has himself another victim."

"I know!" Waluigi shook the small professor violently. "I'm trying to get something to save the little Green Bean!"

"Oh, goodness gracious, and bless my soul." E. Gadd chuckled as he strained against the taller man's hold. "A fellow ghost hunter. Well, my friend, you certainly have come to the right place. Just put me down, and I will be more than happy to help you."

Curling his lip furiously, Waluigi let go of his victim. He tapped his foot impatiently.

"Right. Now, where did I put it?" Professor E. Gadd scurried around the small laboratory, throwing various pieces of debris around. Soon, he pulled out something that looked like a vacuum cleaner. "Behold, the next installment of the Poltergust series. The Poltergust 4000."

"All right. Fine! Just give it to me." Waluigi held out his hand.

The professor smiled. "My goodness. The ghosts must really be irritating you as well, my friend."

"The only thing irritating me is that dumb security system of yours!" Waluigi seethed.

"Oh? Is that all?" Professor E. Gadd chuckled. "Well, if you had simply called ahead to tell me that you were coming, I could have simply," he scurried over to his computer and pressed a big, green button, "turned the security off briefly."  
"WHAT!"

"Ah, but that isn't the matter now." Professor E. Gadd scurried over to Waluigi and offered the Poltergust 4000. "It's all water under the bridge now."

Grumbling, Waluigi snatched the vacuum-like device and made his way back through the broken door.

Mission complete,

signed,

-Waluigi

Ah. Who could forget the ever famous Poltergust?

I'm sorry I wasn't too descriptive this go around, but there is still fun to be had. Just bear with me. Every mission is still important in the build up.

Please, enjoy and review.


	15. Chapter 2 Part 5

Okay, I actually rearranged the series of events to follow a little bit. This is primarily for the sake of not looking like an idiot. What I mean by that is that, if this had been the second Alboort chapter, I probably would have ended up with a nine thousand word chapter that would make the final operation in this locale look pathetic in length. Besides, Star-Krossed needs character development.

Chapter 2.5: In the Dark of the Night

"Okay, okay." Aloort adjusted his glasses. "Things have been going well enough thus far." He held up the button to his projector. "Sure, when I visited Madame Clairvoya, things got a little rough. Unexpectedly, I assure you."

"And what about that loony you're putting so much trust in?" Waluigi held up the nozzle of the Poltergust 4000. "I mean, this is really just ridiculous. It's no more than a vacuum."

"Careful where you point that thing!" Alboort backed up quickly until he almost collided with the screen. "You can't just wave that thing around, when you're a ghost."

"Sorry." Waluigi lowered the device. "I still don't see what the big deal is, though."

"You would when your biggest weakness is being crammed into a tight device with absorption properties." Alboort pulled on his bowtie as he made his way back to his original position on the mausoleum floor. He cleared his throat and gestured to Captain Syrup. "I think I'll feel much better, if you handed that over to Maple Syrup real quick."

"Fine by me." Captain Syrup seized the machine from Waluigi and examined it. "It really dose look like a flawed model. I'm sure I could improve it."

"That would be nice." Alboort tapped the button for his projector, and an picture of a giant tombstone appeared on the screen. "Speaking of things with great suction, I believe that there is only one of us who could safely face Bogmire right now."

"You mean me?" Star-Krossed pointed at himself with his giant hand. "Don't you think that's a little extreme. I really shouldn't get too involved."  
"Star-Krossed, I might be dead, bit not even I could expect to defeat the sheer darkness that is Bogmire." Alboort threw his hands in the air. "That'd be like trying to take down Bowser by throwing a banana peel at him!"

"Very well." Star-Krossed bowed his head. "If it is for the bettering of our position, and the rescue of Luigi, I will be willing to do the work. I do suppose that I do need to earn my keep."

"If you want to put it that way, then we'll accept your help heartily." Alboort clicked the projector button, and Shivers appeared on the screen again. "Now, I may have patched things up from my past, but there's still something really big I need to find now. The key to King Boo's room."

"The key?" Waluigi raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean that you need a key to get to King Boo."

"It shouldn't be that much of a surprise." Alboort chuckled. "Did you really think that King Boo would leave himself as out in the open as Wart did. I probably couldn't get in, let alone the rest of you, without this key." He cleared his throat. "I think he tends to leave the key with Vincent Van Gore, but it's still going to take some work to even get in there."

"Shouldn't be that hard." Ashley drummed her fingers on the arm of her chair. "Heck! I'd probably get the job done better than anyone else."

"Not exactly." Alboort smiled grimly. "I wish I could just let you go in there and beat up whatever you wanted, but the point is to try avoiding any unnecessary attention. Unfortunately, breaking doors open and blasting windows into shrapnel would eliminate the element of surprise." He turned to Captain Syrup. "And we're going to need that element of surprise, when it comes time to eliminate some of the Boo count a bit." He raised an intrigued eyebrow. "Think you can be ready by that time?"

"Of course." Captain Syrup grinned. "The crackpot really made a good start."

"That's what I wanted to hear." Alboort nodded. "Now, we better get ready. No pressure, but we are on a tight schedule. The mansion might have all night, but that's all the time we have."

Star-Krossed crept out of the mausoleum and into the night air. He stared up at the moon and took a deep breath. "My, my. This is a beautiful night to devour." He sighed. "I suppose that I won't be allowed to just eat whatever I want, though. Such a shame." The red star over his eye began to glow brightly.

"Okay, Star-Krossed. Before you go hunting for him, I want to warn you about Bogmire. Sure, he's really a sad creature that is made up of pure negative emotion concentrate and no apparent purpose in life, but that's made him a very dangerous and naturally violent being." Alboort paused. "Oh, wait. Sorry, if I stpped on an toes."

"I don't have any toes to be stepped on." Star-Krossed smirked. "But your intended emotions of sympathy are accepted. I do not need them, though."

"Right." Laughing nervously, Alboort tapped several keys. "Now, you'll have to realize that Bogmire, himself, may not be that much of a threat to you, bit I don't think you can even stand excessive lightning, which Bogmire seems to constantly draw to himself."

"It's true." Star-Krossed nodded sagely. "I might be able to consume light itself, but lightning has never been to my taste. An hundred thousand volts can really knock me out quicker than anything."

"That's what I was afraid of." Alboort leaned back in his chair and sighed. "Just be sure you keep moving, even though I realize you're not used to moving all that fast."

"Just leave it to me." Star-Krossed shook his head to rid himself of his starry gaze. He looked around silently before wandering through the darkness.

After a few moments, the galaxy devourer found himself surrounded by a circle of gravestones. He silently drifted among them, humming to himself as he looked each of the carved markers. He finally stopped in front of the one tombstone with the word BOGMIRE engraved on the front. "Well, it certainly is curious to think about why an entity with no known living existence has earned himself a grave, but it really isn't a bad stone." He took a quick inhale, clearing the dust and cobwebs off of the immense rock. "A really nice stone indeed."  
Thunder cracked across the sky as black clouds quickly gathered in the sky above.

"Strange." Star-Krossed looked straight up. "There was hardly even so much as a cloud just a moment ago. Very strange weather, indeed."

Louder and louder came the thunder as the clouds conglomerated into a single mass. Lightning began to flash great blasts through the dark air. They began to encircle the tombstone circle that the galactic being stood in.

Slowly, Star-Krossed took a step back as a large bolt of lightning came spiraling down towards him. He flashed calmly as the electricity made impact on the soil right in front of the carved out name.

The dirt began to shift, spiraling slowly as something made it's way to the surface. Without causing so much as a crack, a violet gas began to seep through the soil until it floated over the grave in a single mass. It thickened until there were obvious arms stretching out from a towering figure. The purple mass quickly reached Star-Krossed's height, large glowing eyes and gaping mouth facing the space creature. "Who dares to disturb Bogmire?"

"Well, you certainly are a lot taller than I anticipated." Star-Krossed's hand extended from his cloak. "Anyways, I do suppose that proper introductions are due." He cleared his throat. "I am the notorious galaxy devourer, Star-Krossed!"

"Notorious, huh?" Bogmire chuckled. "You could say I'm pretty notorious myself around here. I am the epitome of the mansion's despair and fair, a pure manifestation of darkness."

"As am I, my friend?" Star-Krossed bowed lowly. "Only, I am the epitome of fear and despair for the entire galaxy."

"Interesting." Bogmire stared at the star-based being with interest. He suddenly slumped over. "It must be wonderful to be that important. I hardly even know what to despair or to fear."

"What you must despair or fear?" Star-Krossed raised an eyebrow. "What type of manifestation of darkness do you believe yourself to be? Do you think there should really be anything for you to fear?" He looked up at the stars. "Then again, it must be intriguing, more so that what I am, to be able to feel such unique emotion. We of the dark don't often get that luxury."

"You don't fear anything?" Bogmire's gape grew. "But how could you be able to claim yourself a manifestation of fear?"

"Because everyone should fear me." Star-Krossed sighed. "Even you should fear me."

"You suppose much, you freak." Bogmire growled. "Prepare to know the true meaning of fear!"

Another bolt of lightning flashed between the two entities of darkness, separating them some distance. As Star-Krossed regained his vision, he saw that he was surrounded by Bogmires. He lashed out at the nearest one. The dark claws passed through harmlessly. "What?" He backed away slowly, powering up the stars around his head. He shot a narrow beam of white light at one of the Bogmires, only to see it pass through harmlessly, once again. "Curious. Very curious." He tensed. "But very troublesome."

The Bogmire clones approached even slower than Star-Krossed, surprisingly to him. He furrowed his brow as he stared them down, but he found that he couldn't back his way out of the circle of tombstones.

"I guess there's only one option left. I don't care what the others say." His shadowy hand flashed out and ensnared a nearby Bogmire. The prey was quickly drawn into the depths of the cloak, disappearing permanently. "Now, this is better."

The large hand shot out several times, engulfing another clone each time and swallowing them into eternal inky blackness. Soon, only one Bogmire was left, and it stood afar off.

"Ah, I see." Star encircled Star-Krossed's head and began to glow. "You think you can just hide like that." A thin beam shot out and struck the shadowy phantom through the middle.

Lightning flashed, and Bogmire disappeared. Not even a second later, several more Bogmires appeared.

"Something tells me I won't be able to hurt the original while these shadows wander around." Star-Krossed shrugged. "I guess that just means more for me to eat." His black claws shot out at his enemies.

The Bogmire shadows vanished quickly into the void that was their opponent, each flailing weakly against the powerful inhale of gravitational pull. This quickly left the true Bogmire alone again, open to the Starbolt attack from Star-Krossed.

With another pulse of lightning, Bogmire disappeared and reappeared with twice as many clones.

"Ah, another course." Star-Krossed simply waited as the shadows approached him. His hand shot out and began making quick work of his opponents. "This is getting to be a bit annoying." He narrowed his eyes as he searched through the crowd. After swallowing up the ten or so clones, he quickly charged his third beam and blasted it through Bogmire.

With a fierce shriek, Bogmire fell to his back, flailing aimlessly as he began to fade into the shadows. "How? How could this be?" His squirmed back and forth. "I am the very essence of this mansion. I can't die! Not while the mansion still stands."

Star-Krossed drifted towards the fading phantom, shaking his head. "You're so much more pitiful than I anticipated. You're darkness needs greater concentration."

"But the mansion," Bogmire wheezed. "I need to stay alive, for the mansion."

"Then don't die." Star-Krossed grinned maliciously as his hand snaked out of his cloak. "Become part of my essence!"

The ghost didn't get chance to reply, as the hand ensnared him. Instead of sucking him beneath his cloak, though, Star-Krossed raised him to his mouth and crushed him into purple smoke. The smoke entered through his mouth like a breath of air.

After the purple air was gone, Star-Krossed swallowed and nodded to himself. "Essence captured." With a swish of his cloak, he left the circle of tombstones.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Star-Krossed_

Okay, I realize that Bogmire doesn't talk in Luigi's mansion, and that the battle might have seemed a little odd, especially with the way Bogmire had been introduced. However, just because I have the Poltergust in play doesn't mean that it's the only means to fight ghosts.

Please, enjoy and review.


	16. Chapter 2 Part 6

Chapter 2.6: A Haunting I Will Go!

Alboort looked both ways as he exited the mausoleum. He swallowed softly as he surveyed the gloomy scenery. He looked up at the sky to the moon soaring in the middle of it. "I better hurry up. I'm not sure how long this is going to take, and there's still a lot of work to do, before Luigi can be saved." He pulled out his Thieftech and opened it. "Okay, Waluigi, ready?"

"Not quite." Captain Syrup appeared on the screen. "Waluigi needed his beauty rest, before things got too intense with saving Luigi. That, and he's complaining about how he didn't get to sleep on the drive out here."

"Maple!" Alboort jumped slightly. "Why would you take control of the computer."

"Because I know how to do more than just move a mouse on a computer." Captain Syrup laughed as she leaned back in her chair. "Don't get me wrong. Waluigi's smart, but he really isn't tech savvy worth anything."

"I suppose that's true." Alboort adjusted his glasses. "Still, do you really have any idea as to what I'm doing?"  
"You're going into a creepy, old mansion to talk to a bunch of ghosts, so you can get a key to get us into a really big ghost's room." Captain Syrup furrowed her brow. "It's really not that hard to figure out. You did explain the plan earlier."

"True. That is true." Alboort raised an eyebrow. "Huh? Noone ever seemed to pay that much attention."

"I've got Ashley warming up her staff, in case you run into any particularly nasty ghouls." Captain Syrup smiled. "Waluigi has a fresh batch of Vampire Candy, in case there are some really big problems. The only real problem is that Star-Krossed seems to have suddenly become a Shakespearean actor for some reason. He just sits in the corner, monologuing to himself." He raised an eyebrow. "It's actually kind of creeping me out."

"Yeah. I'm really beginnning to wonder if letting him fight Bogmire was really that great of an idea." Alboort tugged on his bowtie. "It didn't seem to do him much any good."  
"No. Not really." Captain Syrup took a deep breath. "Let's just hurry up and get this Waluigi guy saved. I really should be stretching out on a beach, worrying about moonburn, not helping to save a bunch of people I don't even know."

"The feeling's mutual, trust me." Alboort echoed the deep breath. "Thanks for getting things organized, though."

"Just chat it up with your friends and make it quick." Captain Syrup winked. "We're all waiting."

"Yeah. All right." Alboort flipped his Thieftech shut and stored it. "I should get going. The moon doesn't wait for anyone, even ghosts." He floated towards the mansion.

The doors slammed shut behind the Boo as he entered the old building. "There's really only one person I can remember that would know how to go about this." He floated towards the stairs. "Neville, here I come!"

Passing through a couple of doors, the Boo soon found himself in the study. He looked around quietly until his eyes landed on a redheaded man with a thick mustache. The ghost was reading a rather thick book. After a moment, he let out a long yawn.

"Neville!" Alboort raised his hands high in the air. "How are you doing, old guy?"

"What? What?" Neville jolted in his chair, looking around the room, soon catching the Boo in his sights. "Oh. Oh my!" He rose from his chair and laid the book down on the table. "Alboort, what are you doing here? I thought you had left for good last time King Boo took over the house."

"Yeah. That's what I thought, too." Alboort sighed. "Look, Neville, I need to get into King Boo's room. He's been giving me grief, and I need to give some back."

"Oh my." Neville stroked his mustache. "I suppose none of us really do like the old bean with a crown, but I'm not quite sure if I really want to take any sort of stand."

I was afraid of this. A bead of sweat ran down Alboort's side. S_hould I tell him about Luigi? Or what about Waluigi? Maybe the fate of the world?_ He looked up at the expectant face of the bookish father. _I suppose the world wouldn't mean much to a ghost, and mentioning Luigi's name might not go over as well as I'd like._ "I've got a vampire on my side who could definitely beat the brains out of King Boo!"

"Oh?" Neville blinked a few times, raising both eyebrows. "Well, if you really have something like that working with you, I suppose King Boo really will have a run for his money." He stroked his mustache a little longer. "What exactly are you looking for, though? I admit that not even Shivers gets to have a key to that room."

_True. But if it was that easy, would I really be wasting time here?_ Alboort tapped his chin. _Someone must have a key, though. Then again, maybe I should just bomb the penthouse up top._ He shook his head. _No, I can't do that. I might destroy Luigi in the process, and I doubt Star-Krossed would take well to that._ "Someone must have a key. What about Vincent Van Gore? He seemed pretty chummy with King Boo, before I left."

"A good point." Neville nodded. "However, I'm afraid that Shivers no longer has a key to that room, either." He murmured to himself for a moment before snapping his fingers. "Orville and Henry should know, probably. Those cheeky little devils always know what everyone else doesn't."

"Of course!" Alboort smacked his head. "Where are they, anyways."

"Hmm. Last I checked, I believe their room is currently on the bottom floor, just around the corner and second door to the left." Neville motioned emphatically. "Be quiet, though. Lydia just put Chauncey down for a nap, and you know how cranky he can get, when he's woken up early from any nap."

"Okay. And thanks." Alboort whirled around and floated out of the doors. He followed the directions, going down the stairs in the foyer, through the massive pair of double doors, and down the hall as instructed. He knocked on the door before hurriedly entering the bedroom.

"Oy! What's this?" A blue-clad boy floated from the top bunk bed, whirling around in midair. "What do you think you're doing here?"

"Who is it, Orville?" A red-clad boy looked from the bottom bunk until he was next to the blue-clad brother. "Well, if it isn't Alboort? How you doing you daft, old codger? Become any fun again?"

Alboort chuckled lightly. "Okay, boys, I know we had some good pranks in the past, but now really isn't the time to go and pull any pranks."

"No time for pranks?" The red-clad boy crossed his arms. "I don't know. You don't sound any more fun than last time."

"No fun at all, Henry." Orville nodded. "Why, he's probably just here to scold us on dad's behalf."

_Good grief!_ Alboort rolled his eyes. _How do I get these guys to work with me? I could scold them, like they want. Or maybe I should tell them the truth? Then again, they might find a lie more fun._ He glanced from Orville to Henry and back again. _However, I suppose these two wouldn't believe a lie worth anything, and scolding them is likely only going to make them hostile._ He took a deep breath as he studied the situation. "Okay. What is I told you boys that I was planning on knocking out King Boo? That should be some fun, shouldn't it?"

"Take down the crown?" Orville's eyes widened. "Well, well, that does sound a bit more punky than what you were like, before you left."

"Quite right." Henry smiled. "Of course, wasn't it that big old blighter that made Alboort unfun to begin with?"

"True. Very true." Orville studied Alboort with a high eyebrow. "What if it'd be more fun to help out the king himself?"

_Fun, indeed. That's all you guys care about._ Alboort's brow furrowed. _However, I really need to win these guys' trust. Now, how was that I used to get them to do whatever I wanted?_ _Did I threaten to tell their father, threaten them personally, or ask them nicely?_ He stared straight at the boys. O_h, who am I kidding? These guys hardly respect their parents, and their manners are terrible!_ He flipped a bomb out and whirled it around. "Okay, the two of you better help me out here, or you're going to be tasting gun powder like nobody's business!"

Both ghostly boys jumped back, eying the bomb.

After a moment, Orville began to snicker. "Well, now that's more like it."

"It certainly is." Henry echoed the childish tittering. "I've been waiting to hear you take charge of things again."

"Yeah, yeah. Our little gang has had quite a bit of fun in the past." Alboort put the bomb away. "However, I need to take down King Boo before he ruins everyone's fun. Now, where is the key to Vincent's room?"

"Vincent's room?" Henry tapped his chin, letting a grin widen tremendously on his face. "Well now, isn't that a funny story?"

"Indeed it is." Orville nodded. "Poor Mr. Luggs. That thing must not be doing his digestion any good."

"Wh-what's that supposed to mean?" Alboort floated in place a moment, before smacking himself on the forehead. "You guys so did not put the key on his plate."  
"Oh yeah, we did!" Orville smiled cruelly. "That's what he gets for trying to get us punished for the time we put Biff's sweatsocks on his plate."  
"Sweatsocks?" Alboort pushed his glasses up and shook his head. "Nevermind. I'm just going to go talk to Mr. Luggs real quick."

"Don't be too long." Orville waved impishly after the Boo.

"Yes, come back for a game of hide-and-seek, soon." Henry followed his brother's waving.

Alboort sighed as he left the playroom. He was pleased to hear the sound of munching just across the hall. He flew towards the door and opened in.

In the middle of the darkened room, a very large, fat ghost sat at the table, shoveling what looked like jelly into his mouth at a breakneck speed. It was all the two waiters could do to keep up with the ever-emptying plate.

"Mr. Luggs!" Alboort floated up to the table. "Mr. Luggs!"  
The purple-skinned walrus of a man continued to eat at his astonishing pace.

_Well, this really isn't working very well._ Alboort sighed. _Let's see, if I remember, there was only way to get Mr. Luggs's attention. He really likes to eat in the dark, but why is that? Is he afraid of fire, hates insults, or just likes eating too much to waste time lighting those dumb candles?_ Alboort looked between the candles, frowning. _Please, like this guy's worried about anything but eating. He just loves that food of his_. Whipping off his glasses, Alboort opened his mouth wide, and the jelly began whirling into his mouth.

As the jelly practically vanished instantaneously from the waiters' platters and the giant plate on the table, the fat ghost's eyes grew wide. He looked up at Alboort and glared with fire in his eyes. "What do you think you're doing, you little brat! Why, I oughta!" He took in a great gulp of air and flames began to lick his lips. A giant fireball soon escaped, whizzing its way through the air.

Alboort dodged last second. "Woah! Chill out!" He danced back and forth as fireballs flew past, missing him by mere inches. After several of the projectiles crashed into the wall, though, Mr. Luggs began wheezing, leaning back in his chair.

"Now's my chance!" Alboort flew over and tugged on the giant's sleeve. "Pardon me for interrupting your meal, Mr. Luggs, but I really need to ask you something impotant."

Mr. Luggs leaned back up in his chair. Noticing that the waiters were coming back with more food, the flames disappeared from his lips. "Talk fast, twerp."

"Did you notice anything... strange about your food lately?" Alboort smiled sheepishly. "I mean, weird weird."

"Weird?" Mr. Luggs smacked his lips as he began shoveling food into his mouth again. "Right. That thing a couple days ago!" His brow furrowed, and he growled. "I should really complain to the chef about that. Fortunately, I was able to spit out that nasty chunk of metal before swallowing it." He patted his massive gut. "I might have eaten myself to death, but that doesn't mean I just eat whatever junk there is floating around."

"The key!" Alboort jumped towards the ghost. "Do you know what happened to the key to Vincent Van Gore's room?"

"Couldn't care less." Mr. Luggs shooed Alboort away. "Now, get away from me. I thought you Boos were supposed to be shy little twerps, anyways."

"I suppose so." Alboort replaced his glasses and floated towards the leaving door. "Who was I kidding? Did I really expect him to be any help?" He arrived in the hallway and floated down the passage towards the wide double doors. "Sure, I could probably pass through the walls, but the key to King Boo's room wouldn't, if I tried to go anywhere with it." He sighed.

Suddenly, a balding fellow popped out of the floor. Opening his mouth wide, he gave a hollow moan, waving his arms frantically in the air.

"Hey, Uncle Grimley." Alboort floated on. "How are you?"

"How am I? What do you think?" The older ghost smiled triumphantly. "Wasn't I just terrifying?"

"Huh?" Alboort looked back towards the other ghost. Oh, right. Scaring's all he cares about. However, he really isn't all that scary. I would have thought he'd figured it out by himself. I should be honest with him, but he might prefer being told he is scary. Then again, I might be better off asking his own opinion. He shook his head, thinking hard to himself. "You know, Uncle Grimley, you really just weren't very... scary, even."

"Oh." The older ghost frowned and turned around. He sat down on the floor. "I guess I really shouldn't have expected to be very scary. You young spirits these days have too many newfangled scaring tactics to bother with an old has been as myself." He crouched low to the ground. "Very old has been as I am."

"What!" Alboort jumped slightly. Did I actually mess up. I didn't think he was that emotional. Asking his opinion might not work too well now. "I'm sorry. What I meant was that you're not scary. You're terrifying! Very terrifying! My mind is just a little clouded right now." He placed a hand on his head. "It's really full."  
"Oh my, I'm so sorry about that, boy." Uncle Grimley floated up again. "I suppose you really don't need to be scared while you're thinking so hard." He placed an elbow on his nonexistent knee and leaned down to look at the Boo in the eyes. "Whatever is the matter, boy?"

"I just need to find this key to meet with Vincent Van Gore." Alboort groaned. "But I'm worried that it's lost for good." He looked up at Uncle Grimley. "Why do you care?"

"Well, it's true, that you're not exactly popular around here, but I say everyone gets along with you better than with King Boo." Uncle Grimley smiled. "Besides, I feel you have some significance around here, even though there isn't much memory of who you were during life." He reached into a pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a large key. "Is this what you're looking for?"

"Depends." Alboort stared at the key a moment. "Is that Vincent Van Gore's key."

"Well, I wouldn't say it's his key." Uncle Grimley tapped the large 'V' on the end of the key. "But I would wager a pint of club soda that this is the key to his room."

"Oh, thank you, Uncle Grimley." Alboort grabbed the key out of the older ghost's hands. "Trust me, I'll have King Boo cleared out of here, and you might find yourself the most fearsome phantom in the mansion."  
"Well, well. That would be nice." Uncle Grimley gave a smart nod. "Now, get out of here, before I really feel like scaring the pants off of you."  
"Okay." Alboort rushed down the halls. _Crazy old, loon! I don't even wear pants._

Stairs seemed to be the biggest challenge for Alboort. Primarily, going up the stairs without hurrying. He wasn't too keen about alerting any other Boos of his presence, and if he remembered correctly, Vincent Van Gore's room was always on the top floor. It didn't make the poor intellectual Boo feel any better that King Boo has decided to camp out on top of the mansion this time, likely over the dead artist's studio.

The key fit snugly into the lock, before it turned slowly without the Boo's help.

"Sacre bleu!" A tall man with a thick white mustache looked over the top of a canvas and towards the door. "Vut eez zeez? Zut alors!" He moved around the canvas and pointed at the incomer with his paintbrush. "Just vut do you zink you are doeeng?"

"Whoa. Whoa. Put down the paintbrush for a second." Alboort held his hands up defensively as he entered the studio. "Calm down for just a second, Vincent. I just want to talk."  
"And just vut eez eet you vish to talk about?" Vincent glared down at the Boo. "I am tired of all zeese reedeekulus requests of zee keeng, especially since he does not come face-to-face wiz me. My work eez art! Not some squandering, pazeteec, leettle doodles he can just zrow around like zree-day-old baguettes!"  
"Vincent, take a moment and look at me." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Do I seriously look like I work for King Boo?"

"But of course!" The artist whipped his paintbrush around like a sword. "And you best tell me what you want now, beefore I lose mon patience!"

Oh brother. I really hate being a Boo. Alboort rolled his eyes and tugged subconsciously on his bowtie. However, I need that key, but I'm sure it's going to be tough to get it. How should I ask for it though? I might tell him the plan, but I'm not sure he'd like that too much. Maybe I should act like I do work for King Boo. Or maybe I could just tell him how much I hate King Boo. He cast a sidelong glance at the ghostly artist. Why would I even need the key, if I worked for King Boo? Now that I think about it, I'll probably end up wasting the night if I brought up hating King Boo. Despite silence being good for art, this guy can be a real windbag. "What if I told you that I want to get rid of King Boo? He's running everyone ragged and just causing a complete mess, so I'm working with some people to get rid of him."  
"Geet reed ov zee keeng?" Vincent Van Gore twirled his mustache. "You must take me for a fool. Vy vould a Boo try to geet reed ov Keeng Boo?"

"I don't live here!" Alboort fumed slightly. "Look, all I need is the key to King Boo's room, and I'll be out of your hair."

"Fine by moi." Vincent pulled a golden key out of his pocket and flung it away wistfully. "I do not have a use for it, anyvays. Just be sure to tell zee keeng zat I have a good mind to come up zere and zow heem vut mon art can really do."

Alboort fumbled with the key for a moment, before catching it awkwardly between his short hands. "Trust me. That message will be given, and then some." He turned around and floated out of the studio, smiling.

Mission complete,

signed,

-Alboort

Okay, I don't want to hear anything about how the mansion isn't arranged properly. A magic mansion like this should be allowed to shift however it feels like, and it'd be a real pain to just try guessing where to find rooms otherwise. Oh man, that'd be ugly.

Anyways, there's been plenty of Ghosts, but I suppose I should try to focus on Boos a bit more, huh?

Also, the big rescue/heist/thingy will be after the next chapter. Stay tuned. The adventure is just beginning.

Please, enjoy and review.


	17. Chapter 2 Part 7

Chapter 2.7: Boo-Busters!

Captain Syrup stepped out of the mausoleum into the wee hours of the morning. She took a deep breath of the crisp air and sighed warmly. "You know, a bit of cleaning up, and this place would really be homey." She walked over and rested a hand on the tombstone. "I mean, sure, a little creepy during the night, but a family graveyard is still rather endearing, and quite aesthetic when there's rich grass and the right hedging."

A vibration in her pocket stopped the pirate from her self-indulgence. She pulled out her Thieftech and flipped it open with one hand. Alboort appeared on the screen. "Everything okay out there?"

"Yeah. Everything's fine." Captain Syrup removed her hand from the tombstone and placed it on her hip. "So, what's going on?"

"That depends." Alboort adjusted his glasses. "Have upgraded the Poltergust all right?"

"Yeah. It's here." Captain Syrup smirked. "Just like Waluigi's gadgets, I can equip by using the 2 button on the Wiimote."

Alboort nodded. "Well, let's not waste time. Take it out."

"Alright. Alright. Keep your glasses on." After a few moments of searching through her pack, Captain Syrup pulled out the Poltergust, strapped it to her back, and stood up again. "So, here we are. Fresh off the work bench."

Raising an eyebrow, Alboort watched the vacuum gleam in the moonlight. "Say, is that a chrome-titanium alloy?"

"You know it." Captain Syrup whirled the nozzle in her hand like a baton. "Sure, it was a nice base, but I really had to just gut the whole system and start it out from all but scratch."

"I do say, it looks quite impressive." Alboort tapped his chin. "But what improvements have you made to it? What can it do?"

"Oh, that's simple." Captain Syrup turned the nozzle to reveal a small dashboard. "Depending on which button I press, this bad boy can both vacuum things up and deliver a vicious attack."

"Vicious attack, huh?" Alboort raised his other eyebrow. "I'm not quite sure a strong wind would do much to a ghost besides helping it to escape."

"Who ever said anything about a wind attack?" Captain Syrup smiled as she began pointing at buttons. "Unfortunately, this device is a little heavy, so I can't jump with it on. However, by pressing and holding the A button, I can suck up just about anything like a regular vacuum, only I'm expecting we're intending for ghosts, not dust."

"Sort of. The real target is Boos." Alboort tapped several keys. "You see, Boos primarily gain strength from being in big numbers. We'll need to try to lessen those numbers."

"I guess that makes sense." Captain Syrup placed the nozzle of the Poltergust over her shoulder. "However, I can do more than grab ghosts with this baby. I can shoot lightning with the B button, water with the C button, and fire with the Z button. It's all pretty standard, but I like covering the basics." She rolled her eyes. "Does that professor really think he's that clever or something?"

"I would suppose he does." Alboort tapped his chin for a moment, before his eyes grew very wide. "Wait a second! Did you say you can shoot lightning from the Poltergust!"

"Yeah." Captain Syrup laughed. "It's my primary element. Why wouldn't I make sure to add it to my arsenal?"

"No, no. It's not that." Alboort adjusted his glasses. "It's just that a blast of lightning is the number one weakness of Boos. A shot of that, and I'm sure the poor suckers will be completely out of fight for the vacuum. It's perfect!"

"Well, that is a nice tip to know." Captain Syrup smirked. "So, how many shosts do you want me to catch?"

"Not ghosts. Boos!" Alboort tapped several keys as he frowned. "I think ten should be enough. Plenty to get out of the way, but not enough to draw unwanted attention to ourselves."

"Ten?" Captain Syrup raised an eyebrow. "And just how many Boos are there?"

"I don't know. Twenty-five? Thirty? Forty?"

"Forty, huh?" Captain Syrup closed her eyes halfway. "Wouldn't it make more sense to catch half of them? I mean, if their strength comes from numbers, wouldn't it be best for me to make sure their numbers aren't that many?"

"No." Alboort shook his head. "If I wanted you to take on all the Boos now, I might as well have sent you in with the key to King Boo's room." He puffed himself up. "I just want to make a warning shot, so to speak."

"By catching only Boos, and not ghosts? By catching less than half of the Boos? By pretty much treating the ghosts that haunt the house like great buddies and blasting a hole through the head of any Boos with lightning?" Captain Syrup leaned on the Poltergust's nozzle like it were a short cane. "I don't know. This sounds like a pretty weak excuse for what might as well be part of the master plan."  
"Okay! Okay! I get it!" Alboort growled softly through the Theiftech. "I admit it. I hate Boos. I HATE Boos! I'm a self-hating Boo! Happy!"

"Not quite." Captain Syrup played with a lock of her auburn hair. "Why do you hate them? You are one after all."

"Yes. Must seem pretty strange, huh." Alboort's face turned red. "I don't remember anything about when I was alive, though, and it was a pain having to adapt to being a Boo. I mean, seriously! How would you like having to go around saying, 'Hi, I'm Captain Boorup' or 'Hahaha! It's Wabooigi Time'? I'm not even sure if my name is Albert, and I had to go around with those stupid Boo puns all the time! Not just that, but I have these useless little arms, and a tongue that's almost impossible to keep inside of my head." He his began to shake. "And then, when other Boos actually came to the mansion, I thought things might turned out to be nice and fun, but I was wrong. They began ruining the place! I might have made plenty of mischief, but it was almost impossible to get any peace with those guys around. The other ghosts actually had some memories from journals and diaries and such, but I didn't have any roots here, so I left. I've tried so hard and learned so much, but I'm still nothing more than one of those good-for-nothing, sad, pathetic, gutless excuses for an undead spirit!"

"Okay. Okay. I get it." Captain Syrup held her hands up to silence the Boo, but she smiled. "You're little not that bad, you know. Pretty smart, actually. Sure, you're round and kind of a geek, but if these other Boos are really as bad as you say they are, then I'd never group you with any of them."

"Really?"

"Really." Captain Syrup began spinning the nozzle around again. "So tell me what you want done! Ten Boos, right?"

"Yeah." Alboort began typing in keys furiously. "I'm not going to penalize you for catching any extras. Learning to catch a couple of Boos at the same time is a great skill." He stared at his computer monitor for a for a moment. "If memory serves me correctly, they tend to prefer the higher floors, even when King Boo made his home in the basement. Vacuuming around pieces of furniture would be the best way to draw them out." His glasses gleamed. "Not to mention that there's always some extra coins to find while you're cleaning."

"Really?" Captain Syrup's smile group. "Then I better get going."

"Talk to you later!" Alboort disappeared from the screen.

Captain Syrup snapped her Thieftech shut and looked around. She began speeding her way towards the mansion, holding the Poltergusts nozzle in front of her.

As Captain Syrup entered the mansion, the first thing she noticed was how dark the room was. "Allow me to shed some light on the situation, boys." She pressed a small button, and flames erupted from the vacuum in a short stream.

Glowing orange and blue bodies flew away from the flames as the room became slightly illuminated.

"So much for scary ghosts." Captain Syrup stepped across the foyer and headed up the stairs. When she entered the hallways, she noticed quite a view vases on tables along the way. Smiling, she turned off the flames and activated the vacuum park of the device. She scoured each table as she walked along, milking each decoration as hard as she could before turning to the next one. She soon found some stairs and went up them as well.

On the third floor, Captain Syrup turned the machine off and stepped up to the first door. She threw it open to find that it was rather empty room with only a couch and a couple of telephones on tables. "Criminy, this place really dose need a good cleaning!" She turned on the suction and began working her way around the room.

Not even a moment later, as she was passing the couch, a faint white mist ascended from the cloaked piece of furniture and formed into a white sphere with beady eyes and a wide, toothy grin. It laughed loudly as it opened its arms out wide.

Nonchalantly, Captain Syrup raised the Poltergust and blasted a bolt of lightning in the Boos direction.

Caught completely off guard, the Boo didn't even have time to squeal before it was hit. It floundered around uselessly as its eyes inverted.

Smiling, Captain Syrup flipped the switch, and the vacuum pulled the disabled ghost in with the wink of an eye. She turned her attention to the rest of the room, a golden twinkle in her eye.

The next three rooms went pretty much the same. Sure, the armory took a little bit of hunting through all the old metallic suits, but the Boo in there didn't really do much more than laugh before it got hit. In what looked to be no more than a room with a giant mirror in it, the Boo seemed more distracted by Captain Syrup's reflection than the real thing. The Boo in the washroom was hiding in the toilet, much to the pirate's distaste, but it was no more active the others.

It was the fifth room that surprised the captain. She walked in to see an old lady knitting what looked to be the world's longest scarf ever. She stood there a moment, watching the ghostly lady rock back and forth. _Right. Don't mess with the ghosts. Don't mess with the ghosts._

"Oh my." The old lady's head swung in Captain Syrup's direction. "Aren't you a pretty, young thing." She rested her head back on her chair and sighed. "I used to have a figure like that, when I was your age."

Crud. Can she read my mind? Captain Syrup shifted her weight awkwardly. "Um, have you seen a Boo come in here."  
"A Boo?" The older ghost gagged. "Nasty little things. And yes, one did just come in here. Knocked one of my yarn balls and flew off beneath that table." She pointed a long finger at a small table in the corner. "Why, if it weren't for these old bones, I'd get up and show that little punk a thing or two."  
Not responding to the old woman, Captain Syrup walked over to the corner table, her fingers positioned on her two favorite buttons. She pulled in a quick gasp of air into the nozzle and waited for the misty ball to form.

Surprisingly, the white mist floated past the pirate and into the middle of the room. Captain Syrup whirled around and blasted a bolt of lightning, not even taking the time to look around her.

Fortunately, the Boo had formed just in front of the old woman before it was hit. The electrified Boo sort of flopped like the others, before it was pulled in.

Captain Syrup jumped when she heard a sharp sound. When she realized that it was just the old woman's wheezing laughter, though, she calmed down and walked back to the door, smiling awkwardly as she passed the senior spirit.

The last room on the top floor seemed to be an observatory. There were several nice caches of coins lying around the room, but it didn't really look like there were any Boos present. That is, until the telescope began whirling around by itself. A blast of lightning made it freeze momentarily, but Captain had to remind herself that the vacuum attachment was what dew the Boos out. She pulled on the telescope with the sucking wind until the Boo finally made itself known. She didn't even bother with the lightning, though the Boo did put up a bit of a fight. She still won, anyways, drawing the Boo in with a few swift tugs.

"Okay. That's six Boos down." Captain Syrup counted on her fingers. She looked around the room. "However, I think this is the last room up here. It's a real pain, honestly." She turned and made her way out of the room. She quickly made her way to the stairs and went down a flight. She turned and quickly made her way to the first door she could find.

The inside of the room looked to be just a classic bathroom. The sink was present, and a mirror hung just above it. The curtain was wrapped around the tub... and there was a silhouette visible through it!

Captain Syrup quickly spun her way out of the room and slammed the door. She panted slightly before pushing herself away. "Okay, seeing how that's the second bathroom I've ended up in, maybe I won't find so many on the next floor." She made her way back to the stairs and descended another flight.

Much to her relief, the first room Captain Syrup entered on the ground floor was the laundry room. The bulky washer and dryer took up the better part of the room, but that didn't phase her too much as she began her Boo hunt. She found it hiding out in the washer, and in a flash of lightning, it was paralyzed. The victory of vacuuming up the Boo was quickly followed by the searching through the rest of the room for, though it wasn't as fruitful as she had anticipated.

"Haven't these people ever heard of leaving change in your pockets while your clothes go through the wash?" Captain Syrup pouted, but she was surprised to see another door on the other end of the laundry room. She walked over and pulled it open to reveal a quaint room with muted furniture and a wide, low bookshelf. Mops, brooms, and buckets were piled over various boxes. "Oh yeah. This place definitely needs to get cleaned up."

A brief go-over with the Poltergust brought out some coins. A lot of coins! Even a few bills floated through the air. So much so, that the purple-clad pirate didn't realize the appearance of the white mist until she heard the classic Boo laugh behind her. She whipped around and shot lightning several times. The blasts dissipated before they hit any walls, but the Boo was definitely mocking her for it. She switched to water and began hosing down the whole room. When she was sure she had doused everything but a small circle around herself, she switched back to lightning and fired.

Needless to say, the Boo got quite a shock out of that experience.

The ninth Boo was a lot easier to work with. It was hiding behind behind a rack of clothing in what looked like a dressing room. It quickly went down with a bolt of lightning like the earlier Boos, not even getting a fair chance at a fight.

The next room Captain Syrup entered rather surprised her. Weights and other exercise equipment were scattered across the floor, including a very old and worn looking treadmill. In the middle of the room stood the largest ghost she had ever seen. With beach blond hair and bulging biceps, he was more than easily benching the weights he had in hand.

The pirate quietly walked around the room, minding her own vacuuming, and doing her best to be ignored by the ghost. Nevertheless, she realized that she eventually either had to get near him or in his vision range in order to check new pieces of equipment for a Boo. She decided to go for vision. _Don't pay any attention to him, and he won't pay any attention to you._

Nevertheless, as soon as she walked in front of the bodybuilder, a loud thud could be heard as though someone were putting down a heavy load. "Hey there, Fraulein. How youse doin'?"

Captain Syrup wheeled around on her heels. "I'm sorry, are you talking to me?"

"Sure thing, Fraulein." The ghost flexed his transparent muscles. "I was just checkin' youse out, and I thought youse vould like to be checkin' out this gun show right here."

"The only thing I want to be checking out is Boos." Captain Syrup's brow furrowed. "Have you seen any?"

"I ain't been seein' no Boos, Fraulein." The large ghost smiled. "But I have been seein' a nice set of b-" He was knocked backwards by the punching bag, flailing his arms until he flopped onto his back. He reached up weakly with one hand and raised his head ever so slightly. "I vas just going to say buns." A large bolt of lightning coursed through his pale blue body, leaving his smoking frame still on the ground.

Captain Syrup looked up just in time to see a dazed-looking Boo floating between her and the punching bag she had just hit. She silently lifted the Poltergust's nozzle and vacuumed up the white specter, with only a few mild pulls on her part.

Breathing hard, she pulled out her Thieftech. "All right, Alboort. I got your ten Boos." She looked down at the massive ghost that was still collapsed on the floor. "And I'm sorry, but I had to knock out a ghost to get one."

"What?" Alboort became frantic. "Who?"

"Some meathead." Captain Syrup shrugged. "Definitely more muscle than brains."  
"Oh, you mean Biff." Alboort sighed. "That's okay, then. Biff can take a couple of hits." He tapped several keys on his keyboard. "However, as much as I'm sure you'd enjoy going treasure hunting, I need you to get back here, so he can figure out the rest of the plan for tonight. It's not like we have forever to do this."  
"Oh, do I have to?" Captain Syrup teasingly smirked. "All right. Be there in just a minute, Handsome." She winked at the screen before closing her Thieftech. Heaving the nozzle over her shoulder, she ran out of the exercise room and made her way out of the mansion.

_Mission complete,_

_signed,_

_-Captain Syrup_

Okay, I don't want any complaints about how Captain Syrup couldn't jump while wearing the Poltergust. Luigi couldn't jump with it on, and I needed the controls.

Also, I'm sorry if it seemed quick, but it would have gotten boring if I had simply described Captain Syrup's every move and everything.

Much like the fight with Bogmire, this is a very accuracy-based mission. Be sure you've got the enemy in your sights before attacking, or you might leave yourself open. However, like in the real Luigi's mansion, the Boos can be in any room. Rooms are rearranged in this mansion, one again. However, various cutscenes might occur with different ghosts, depending on what rooms you enter. I simply chose ones that came to me first.

Anyways, the big heist to steal/save Luigi will be the next chapter, so stay tuned.

Please, enjoy and review.


	18. Chapter 2 Part 8

Chapter 2.8: Operation: Art Thieves

Waluigi sighed as he sat down. "Well, here we go. Guess it's time to save the dumb Green Bean now, huh?"

"To put it bluntly, yes." Alboort nodded slowly as he picked up his projector control. "Now, I realize that this really isn't what we'd prefer to be doing right now, but I'd prefer that there isn't a lot of complaints." He stared in Waluigi's direction. "You see, the moon is getting pretty close to setting, and I think Star-Krossed's sanity is being challenged enough as it is." He swallowed cautiously, his gaze shifting to the turned away figure in the corner. "Really, he's creeping me out, now."  
"Yeah. Shakespeare really wasn't written for kids." Captain Syrup shrugged. "At least he's not telling the original Grimm's fairy tales anymore. Now that's really creepy."  
"I can only imagine." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "Well, I didn't realize that either he or Bogmire was very well read, so I don't really understand it." He clicked the button, and the mansion appeared on the screen. "However, what we should focus on is getting Luigi out of the mansion, before the sun rises."

"Sounds good to me." Waluigi grinned as everyone raised an eyebrow in his direction. He shrugged and chuckled. "Hey, it'll be nice to be able to hold it over the Green Bean that I saved his life."

"Yes, I suppose that will be something." Alboort smiled to himself. He soon snapped out of his thoughts, and slapped the screen. "Now, I want to shed a little light on the situation, and by that, I actually mean that we'll need to turn the lights on. Captain Syrup, you'll need to go down into the breaker room in the basement and flip the switch. Aside from making it easier for the rest of you to see, it will mean that most of the ghosts should harmlessly disappear into the darker parts of the mansion. This will be a great advantage for us, as it means that there should be less interference for when we save Waluigi."  
"Sounds easy enough." Captain Syrup took hold of her chin. "Maybe too easy."

"Hey, I just know that, should there have been any foul play with the wiring, I suspect that you should be able to fix it." Luigi popped up on the screen behind Alboort. "Now, we'll need to be quick with this. King Boo might be startled at first, but I doubt that he's going to hide himself for too long." He nodded in Ashley's direction. "You'll need to go with Waluigi. He'll be busy grabbing the painting, and you'll need to make sure he gets out safely. The lights might scare off most ghosts, but it's likely going to be darker outside of the mansion."

"Oh please." Ashley folded her hands in her lap. "If you really think I'll be scared off by a few ghosts, you're gravely mistaken." Her eyes narrowed. "However, why don't I just take out King Boo, before we get Luigi out of there."

"King Boo is different from other ghosts. Very different. Most can be beaten out by an elemeny of something, but he can't be stopped by magic alone. No! He'll have to be contained." He turned in Captain Syrup's direction.

The pirate raised her hands in defeat. "Fine! I'll take care of you're giant ghost problem." She crossed her arms. "You better hope this job pays off well."  
"Oh, I'm sure it will." Alboort clicked the button in order to bring up King Boo. He pointed at the top of the larger Boo's head. "See that crown? That won't get sucked up."

"Now, you're talking my language, ghost boy." Captain Syrup grinned.

"I've only got one problem." Waluigi gestured at the screen. "I mean, Captain Syrup flips a light switch, Ashley and I steal Luigi away, and Captain Syrup hopefully runs to our rescue. End of story." He furrowed his brow. "That sounds just too easy to me."  
"Well, these are ghosts, so my only real advice is don't take everything I say for granted, and always expect the unexpected." Alboort bit his lip. "Actually, for all I know, this whole plan will go awry, and we might get caught in the mansion as it travels."

"What do you mean we?" Ashley pointed accusingly at Alboort. "It sounds to me like you don't have anything to do with this operation."  
"Oh, I do have one more thing I need to take care of." Alboort tugged on his bowtie. "But that's personal business. Very personal business."

"Uh-oh! Does Mr. Computer have a crush?" Captain Syrup's grin turned into a smirk as she jabbed a teasing finger in the Boo's direction.

"Of course not." Alboort blushed fiercely. "I seriously just havesomething I want to get done before we leave."

"All right. All right. You win." Captain Syrup's smirk only grew as she raised her hands defensively. "For now."

"Would just go out there and get the lights flipped?" Alboort growled.

"Gone, kid. Gone." Captain Syrup blew a kiss as she stood up. She ran towards the door. As soon as she was outside, she sped towards the mansion.

The cellar doors were thrown open as the pirate descended the stairs. The dark hall was clearly darker than anything above ground. It was all but pitch black.

"Great. Figures that there'd at least be one creepy part of the mansion." She released a low groan as she descended into the dark. She felt around on the buttons on the Poltergust. After a brief moment, she released a puff of flame. It curled in front of her as she walked along, releasing a gentle orange light as she walked along. It was a surprisingly short hall, only a few doors lining it on either side, unlike the halls in the upper floors.

As she walked down the hall, Captain Syrup heard the ticking of an hundred clocks. She paused and looked at the door where the sound seemed to be coming from. "Strange. Why keep clocks downstairs?" She rubbed her chin a moment. "Then again, I suppose time doesn't have much meaning to ghosts." She raised an eyebrow. "Still, that wouldn't make much sense as to why they'd keep any clocks at all." She shrugged. "I guess I'll have to check it out later, though. Still have a job to do."  
The door at the end of the hall was made out of heavy iron, rather the the wood that made up the rest of the house. Captain Syrup was still able to crank the old door open, and the next room was quite large. However, it was rather empty except for a few tables, a single fuse box on the wall, and a giant circuit breaker in the middle of the room. She put away the Poltergust and walked over to the darkened breaker. She felt out the giant switch and flipped it in the on position

The room was still dark.

"Wonderful. Just wonderful." Captain Syrup rolled her eyes as she pulled out the Poltergust and started her flaming torch again. She made her way to the fuse box and pulled the lid open. "Ah cripes! How the heck did they mess things up this badly!"

Seven small cords were tangled up inside of the small box. Using her one hand, Captain Syrup first worked around the red and purple wires, getting them to switch inlets. She switched the white with the orange, and then then white with the yellow. _This doesn't make any sense at all! Not only am I working with an odd number of wires, but it doesn't seem as though there were any easy switcharoos._ She tapped her chin. _Let's see, red, yellow, purple, blue, orange, white, and green. Oh brother, don't tell me that I actually have to do that!_

Sighing, the purple-clad captain switched the red wire, so it was in the first position. Orange came second, then yellow, followed by green, which came before blue in the series, and purple took the spot after blue. Only a split second after white took the last slot, a sputter of sparks came from the top of the box, and so did a ghost!

Captain Syrup stepped back to a safer position as the ghost came out. It was streamlined and had long arms, a ghoulish smile crossing its face.

As it was the first thing she could think of, Captain Syrup raised her Poltergust, blasted the ghost with lightning and sucked it into the nozzle.

The lights still didn't turn on.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Captain Syrup growled as she dug out her Thieftech. She flipped it open and dialed for her speeddial.

"So Slim, you mean to tell me that Miss Penelope started to let herself go?" Alboort lined his stick up with the cueball and fired. A brief ricochet left one of the stripes balls missing a pocket by an inch.

"Oh yeah." Slim Bankshot took his own aim, flexing the stick back and forth. "She really seemed to have taken that runner-up deal hard. Sure, she keeps lying about how the weight she's put on is simply temporary stress weight, but that was nearly ten years ago." He launched the cueball and let it fly around the table. "She's looking more like a pig with each passing day."  
"That's really too bad. She was probably the prettiest ghost I had ever seen." Alboort watched as one of Slim's solids fell into a pocket. "Of course, I never did get to see the competition."

"That's what's driving me nuts, too." Slim lined up his next shot. "She was a drop dead gorgeous woman, if you'll excuse the pun." He quickly adjusted his glassed before he struck. "Must have been a heck of a woman to have even competed with her, let alone beat her."  
"Really? I would have thought you'd ha-" Alboort stopped as his Thieftech vibrated. He pulled it out and opened it to see Captain Syrup. "Something wrong?"

"Depends." Captain Syrup frowned through the phone. "Are the lights on up there?"  
"Well, no." Alboort stared at the screen a moment, before nearly knocking himself unconscious with the pool stick in his hand by accident. "What's going on down there?"

"I think some ghosts got in a jammed up the wires somehow." Captain Syrup bit one of her fingers. "I'll need you to check it out, though, if you don't want a whole bunch of ghosts jam-packed into this contraption of mine."  
"Hey, Alboort, it's your shot." Slim struck the butt of his poolstick on the floor a couple of times.

"Well, I'm not sure if I can promise anything, but I'll see what I can do."

"Very well. Just hurry up and get down here." Captain Syrup's eyes became shifty. "As for me, I think I might need to investigate something else out."

Alboort swallowed as closed the Thieftech. "Sorry, Slim, but I need to get going." He floated towards the nearest outlet in the wall.

"What do you mean going?" Slim took hold of his poolstick with both of his thin hands and acted as though he were threatening to break it. "I'm only one ball away from the eight ball, and this is the first time anyone's played a real game with me in who knows how long."

"I'm sorry, Slim, but I have business to attend to." Alboort took a deep breath. "It's time to get rid of King Boo once and for all."

"Whatever." Slim huffed. "But you better be back to finish this game."  
"I'll see what I can do." Alboort shrunk down and slipped into the wiring of the house. Inside the wire was particularly dark, but he could still see. With a get adjustment of his glasses and an encouraging deep breath, he floated down the wire.

It was a real maze getting around in the wiring. It had to experiment at a couple of forks, but he rarely had to double back. The trip was also a lot shorter than he anticipated, seeing how he was descending from the second floor. The twists that should have brought him plummeting down the tube of the wire was defied by his ghostly powers as he headed towards what he was sure should be the fuse box in the basement.

"So, a quantum volt discharger. King Boo is smarter than I thought. That could knock out the electricity for a whole town." Alboort looked over the red dome on the ground. "Thank goodness, though. I was afraid it'd be a real disaster, like a break in the circuit or a rusted copper thread." He pulled out a bomb. "A couple charges should be just enough, and I'll be home free." He paused. "Of course, I guess I'll need to check all the wires for these." He shrugged as he placed the first bomb on the small device. He floated away, and the bomb burst for a flaming assault on the small gadget. The quantum volt discharger was heavily cracked, almost shattered, but it was still in one piece.

However, phantom laughs filled the wire as long, thin ghosts began speeding through the wall.

"Grabbing ghosts! Why does it always have to be grabbing ghosts?" Alboort choked back a moan as he wove his path through the darting spirits. He placed another bomb and continued down the wire. As soon as the bomb's explosion could be heard behind him, surges of electricity pulsed up from where Alboort was headed. He jumped over the new obstacles, but from the screams behind him, he could tell that his attackers couldn't dodge the electricity.

The Boo worked fast as he flew up the second wire at the eight wire connector. Grabbing ghosts seemed to be waiting around the next quantum volt discharger, but they were easy for Alboort to dodge long enough to place a couple of bombs on the small red device and destroy it. As soon as the first wave of electricity came down the wire, the grabbing ghosts flew out of the tormenting wire while Alboort simply jumped over it.

The next pair of wires went just as easily. There were some grabbing ghosts, but they were spread well enough to be dodged. They zipped quickly towards him, but a simple dodge one way or the other made them miss. The bombs were quickly applied in both cases, sending the offending ghosts speeding away from the targeted areas.

The fifth wire was just as thickly ghosted as the others, but Alboort finally got himself caught by one of the red grabbing ghosts. He scowled as the ghost shook him. He whipped his tongue out and lashed it at the ghost. The ghost shrieked as the tongue him him, letting go of Alboort and covering his faced with his hands.

Alboort quickly made his move, using a couple of quick bombs to destroy the local quantum volt discharger. He made a fast u-turn and back down the wire to the connector. In the sixth wire, he used his tongue to block a flew oncoming grabbing ghosts, particularly the red ones. It took him a little longer to place the bombs on the red device, but he still got it accomplished in only a few moments.

"This is too easy." Alboort chortled as he made his way from the sixth wire to the seventh wire. "I mean, this has to be the last wire, and I doubt that King Boo would take the time to add anymore security. This is a piece of-" He froze as he looked down the wire. "Oh my Grim Reaper!"

Grabbing Ghosts made a thick cloud in the wire, red and white stripes whirling back and forth.

Alboort swallowed. "Oh, I really wish that I didn't have to do this." He opened his mouth wide and sped down the hall, tongue lashing back and forth. The ghosts seemed quite frightened of the paralyzing licks, backing up circling around the Boo to attack from behind. He had to place a bomb on the final quantum volt discharger quickly and blew it up, which seemed to disperse some of his pursuers. He had to turn around fast, before another ghost made contact with his tongue. He kept attacking with his tongue, whether their was a ghost in his way or not, just to be safe. The final bomb was left and detonated when he was a safe distance away.

As the other ghosts flew out from the electric current, Alboort turned around and flew up the wire. He soon arrived at a junction of wire and wall, and he jumped out of the outlet.

The Boo landed on the floor of the lit up breaker room, Captain Syrup standing above him. "Good Grim Reaper I hate grabbing ghosts." He gave a sigh of relief. "At least everything is lit up now."

"Sure is." Captain Syrup gave her pack a slight heave. "Nice going, geek."

"Hey, I'm just glad that you got the wiring right." Alboort swallowed. "We need to go, though. The seconds will be counting now that the lights are on. You have the Poltergust ready?"

Captain Syrup pulled the vacuum-like device out of her pack. She put in on and readied the nozzle. "Let's get this job finished."

Waluigi and Ashley stood on the roof near the little hovel that was King Boo's lair. They were standing around until a beam of light flying in their direction startled them. The sudden outburst of light came from the hovel's window, glaring against the remaining dark of the night.

"Think that's the sign?" Ashley turned to Waluigi.

"I don't know much about a sign, but Alboort said we should move as soon as the lights turned on." Waluigi ran towards the small tower.

"Too bad." Ashley sighed as she looked up at the sky. "The moonlight was really lovely." She slowly followed Waluigi.

The two stood just outside the window. Looking in, they searched back and forth through the room. It was clear except for the portrait of Luigi on the wall.

"Wow. That light must have shocked him." Ashley blinked lightly. "I knew ghosts weren't big fans of light, but I thought that was sunlight, not lightbulbs."  
"I think it's a matter of taste, like with Alboort." Waluigi sidestepped towards the door. "Speaking of the guy, let's grab Luigi and get out of here, so we can meet him."

Ashlet nodded. She produced the large golden key from her dress pocket and handed it to Waluigi.

"I don't know about this." Red appeared in the staff's red gem. "I sense something."  
"It's probably just King Boo, twerp." Waluigi stuck the key in the lock and turned it. He ripped the door open and ran inside.

"Waluigi!" Luigi leaned up to the portrait's screen. "But what are y-"  
"Don't ask, don't tell." Waluigi ripped the portrait off of the wall and tucked it beneath his arm. A tunnel was revealed, but there were no signs that Luigi had actually been hiding there.

"I best suggest that we get out of here." Red began quivering in his position. "I really don't like this place at all."

"Red! Quiet." Ashley looked around. "I sense something, too, but I can't focus with your complaining."

"Sorry, Ashley." Red disappeared from the gem.

Waluigi shrugged. "Ah, calm down. It's probably only King Boo hiding in here somewhere."

Loud barking echoed from the tunnel.

"This might just be me, seeing howas I haven't met King Boo," Ashley got into a combative position, "but I don't think Boos bark."  
"Then we better get out of here!" Waluigi ran towards the open door, the witch in close tow.

Suddenly, a dog sled flew from the tunnel, pulled by a ghostly bulldog and manned by a phantom Eskimo. "By order of King Boo and all that is cold, I demand that you drop that painting!"

Waluigi screamed as he ran towards the side of the mansion.

"We need to keep Waluigi safe." Ashley took a firm grip of her staff. "You won't get by me!"

"I, Sir Weston, am not scared of a puny girl!" The Eskimo produced a whip. "I will run you over!" He cracked the whip over the dog. "Mush! Mush!"

Ashley jumped backwards over the side of the mansion behind Waluigi. She shot a magical blast at Sir Weston, but it only made him flail on his sled. He was able to sturdy himself. She had to run close behind Waluigi, but she could sense that the ghostly sled was catching up to them. She spun around and shot another blast at the predatory ghost. It did nothing to slow down the sled.

Sir Weston laughed. "Shoot me as much as you want! I can take it!"

"Blast it!" Ashley turned around again to catch up to Waluigi, but the bulldog was nearly biting her ankles. She turned and blasted the dog in the face.

The poor dog whined and slowed back from his chase.

"Dumb dog!" Sir Weston snapped the whip over the large hound. He leaned forward as though that were to speed them up.

Waluigi and Ashley were running quickly, but the dog seemed to get faster with each crack of the whip.

Ashley turned around and blasted the dog again. It whined as the magic hit it, shaking its head and all but stopping in place. Another sound of the whip, and the dog started up again.

The green energy fields of Professor E. Gadd. It was still quite a distance away, but Waluigi's long legs were making great speed.

"Oh no you don't!" Sir Weston swung his whip over his head, and an icy puff developed over his head. A blue beam went flying over his victims and made an icy wall over in front of the green one.

"So, you like it cold, huh?" Ashley powered up her staff and shot an icy beam at the dog.

The poor bulldog whined as the blast hit him. A block of ice froze him over.

"Oh-ho. You will find that I am not so weak to ice!" Sir Weston jumped off of his sled and began running after them.

Ashley fired a couple more blasts of magic, turned around, and ran. She started shooting blasts past Waluigi and into the ice wall, breaking it down somewhat.

After a brief daze, the Eskimo began his hunt again, gaining quickly on the witch, whip in hand.

Waluigi made it through the two walls, ice falling around him. Ashley was only a few steps behind, but the whip was already coming at her.

With a last double jump, Ashley dodged the whip's attack and flew through the green field. Sir Weston, however, ran straight into the field and received the shock of his life. He backed up and began and began bellowing. "You two are very lucky skunks!" He clutched his fists. "If I didn't have to be back in the mansion before sunrise, I'd tear this stupid forcefield apart with my bare hands!" He turned around and ran away, grabbing the frozen ghost dog along the way.

"I could have taken him." Ashley spun her staff like a baton. "It might have taken awhile, and he moves too fast on that sled, but I could have."

"Yeah. Sure." Waluigi huffed and puffed, gulping down oxygen. "Just give me a while to catch my breath." He flopped down to the ground, letting Luigi slip from beneath his arm.

"How long will this breather take?" Luigi wrung one of his wrists. "It's kind of stuffy in here."

"I'll rest as long as I want!" Waluigi poked portrait Luigi on the nose. "And I best suggest that you shut up, Green Bean, or, Ashley as my witness, I will snap you in half right now."

Luigi placed his hands over his mouth.

Captain Syrup and Alboort jumped out of the trap door that led to the roof. They looked around and saw the broken shack on the roof.

"Well, certainly looks like Ashley was here." Captain Syrup laughed. "Has her style all over."

"I don't know." Alboort swallowed. "You don't expect that King Boo actually went after them, do you?"

"Went after who?" A horrible voice echoed over the roof. A massive white mist floated from the remains of the shack. As it solidified, the wooden planks blasted apart, and the whole of the roof was cleared off of the debris. A Boo thrice the size of any of the ones Captain Syrup had caught earlier and was wearing a large crown on his head. "Are you the one who stole my special portrait?" He looked over at Alboort. "Seize her!"  
Captain Syrup cast a sidelong glance at the Boo standing next to her and smirked. "Is he actually talking to you?"

"I-I think so." Alboort raised an eyebrow. "I mean, I am a Boo after all."

"Didn't you hear me?" King Boo seethed. "Seize her!"

"I-I-I c-can't." Alboort swallowed. "I mean, look at her."

"Seriously!" Captain Syrup huffed, placing her hands on her hips. "Do i look like I'm carrying any sort of large painting on my back."

"But you must have i-" King Boo's eyes shrunk as he looked the pirate up and down. "You! What does she have on her back?"

"Well, it looks to be the," Alboort looked over at his teammate, and his eyes shot open as the laid on the model's name gleaming in the remaining moonlight, "Poltergust 9000!"

"What? 9000!" King Boos eyes shifted quickly towards Captain Syrup. "There's no way that Gadd's that smart!"

"Do I look like I'm that white-haired shrimp?" Captain Syrup spun the nozzle of the Poltergust 9000 in her hand. "You're dealing with someone much smarter than him."

"Make that two someones!" Alboort puffed out his chest. "A ghost still counts as a someone, right?"

"Of course they do." Captain Syrup rolled her eyes. "As long as you were born, you're a someone."

"What are you two blabbering about?" King Boo's eyes shifted over to Alboort. "Wait! You!"

"Yeah, it's me." Alboort waved shyly. "Been a while, hasn't it!"

"Well, would you look at this." King Boo laughed evilly. "The traitor and the enemy of all ghosts. Who'd have thought?" He gave a loud, shrieking call.

Boos started popping through the roof like crazy. They surrounded the king in a large circle, before starting some sort of dance.

"Twenty-five Boos?" Captain Syrup looked over at Alboort. "See, it's things like these that make me ask questions like 'Should I catch more than ten Boos?'."

"I know. I know!" Alboort's eye didn't leave the big group of dancing Boos. They soon dissolved into King Boo, all of them turning into a milky mist, expanding and expanding.

Finally, a giant Boo with a large crown and big, red eyes was staring down at the two other occupants of the mansion's roof. "Now, it's time for you to cover in fear before the great King Boolossus!" Loud, dark laughter clattered through the night air.

"Oh crud, why didn't I think about this?" Alboort began to shake as he looked up at the imposing figure. He soon stopped and whispered at Captain Syrup through the side of his mouth. "Listen, Maple. Unlike most of the ghosts in this mansion, King Boo is actually an ice-type ghost, not a dark type."  
"So?" Captain Syrup whispered back.

"My bombs will likely be able to separate. However, I'll need you to run around, dodging the bombs and his atacks, until he explodes." Alboort swallowed quickly. "Don't bother messing with the king until the end. Just use your lightning-vacuum combo to catch the regular Boos first. Once they're gone, he should be powerless."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Captain Syrup held the nozzle of the Poltergust 9000 up. "When should we start?"

A giant ball of ice crashed between the two teammates.

"Now might be good." Alboort stared wide-eyed at the shattered ice.

"Makes sense to me." Captain Syrup turned around and ran.

Alboort placed his first bomb on the ground and floated away from it. King Boolossus paid little attention to the movements of his small opponents, so it wasn't much of a challenge for him to end up hitting the bomb attached to the roof. He exploded into the mass of smaller Boos.

Captain Syrup quickly got to work as she began shocking and vacuuming up Boos. Within only a matter of minutes, she had captured five of them. Unfortunately, they began to organize and regroup into their massive bulk.

Dodging another chunk of ice, the pirate did her best to run the giant Boo around in a circle. His massive frame made it easier to fly fast, but he couldn't turn so well. She was able to get around by staying close to the edge, but the weight of the Poltergust nearly pulled her over.

The second bomb was set and waiting as Captain Syrup raced around it. She was prepared as she turned around to face her enemy. She let loose a lightning bolt.

"Hey! Hold on a minute!" Alboort dodged the lightning by only a fraction of an inch. "I'm not the enemy here!"  
"Sorry about that, handsome." Captain Syrup ran back towards the edge some more, before hearing the explosion that signaled the dispersion of the Boos. She quickly turned around and began shooting down the Boos. She ran through with the vacuum function on, sucking up as many of the Boos as she could. Her catch this time was about seven. She did her best to run away as the Boolossus began to reform.

"You're really making me mad, and that's not a good thing!" King Boolossus shot out three ice balls this time in a range.

The pirate was just able to see Alboort place his next bomb on the rooftop before she needed to dodge around the frozen projectiles. She shot a couple of warning bolts, but they only seemed to get absorbed in he giant Boo's mass. She jogged her way around the smaller, though still massive, Boo until she was behind his. She ran past the bomb only a short distance this time, but she still had to dodge back and forth as icy blasts came her way. She danced backwards until King Boolossus ran over the bomb, exploding into his components again.

This time around, Captain Syrup was able to gather another seven Boos, but the accuracy left much to be desired as the Boos' numbers began to dwindle. They reformed behind her as she passed by.

King Boolossus might have been smaller, but he still gave great chase. He wheeled around quicker as Captain Syrup dodged both his ice bombs and his body. He still didn't think much, though, as he ran into another bomb.

The hectic Boos were a little bit trickier of a target as they darted around chaotically. None of the lightning shots hit anything as Captain Syrup fired.

Suddenly, a ghostly dog ascended from the roof, covering his mouth with one paw and chuckling. A lightning bolt to the head sent him flopping backwards and into the roof again.

Captain Syrup clenched her fist. "Man, I hate that dog!"

"Focus!" Alboort floated into the middle of the roof after King Boolossus passed by, getting another bomb ready. "You're hunting Boos, not ghosts."

"Sorry again." Captain Syrup bristled. "But your ghost dog didn't need to do that, either." She was just able to swerve from the most recent ice attack. She swayed slightly as she ran around the bomb again, hoping the giant Boo still didn't notice.

The exploding pop occurred, and that's when the games began. Lining up her shots well, Captain Syrup was able to shoot down four more Boos and catch them in the Poltergust 9000.

This smaller version of the Boolossus was hardly any taller than Captain Syrup. Nevertheless, he still laughed as he pursued her. He was still completely oblivious to the fact that his same tactics weren't being very effective, and that quickly became his undoing as the next bomb blew him apart, and the final two smaller Boos were captured.

King Boo growled as he realized he was a one man army. "You!" He turned in Alboort's direction. "You insufferable little ingrate."

Alboort crossed his arms. "Hey, you were the one who invaded my home, not the other way around, buddy."

"You Bool! This mansion is mine!" King Boo sped forward and slapped Alboort to the ground. "And don't you talk to your King like that." He glowered over the smaller Boo.

Flames erupted onto the larger Boo's back, before he could attack, though. He screamed loudly as he continued to be seared, floating out of vision and in again. Before too long, he fell forwards, his crown falling off of his head. This motion was quickly followed by Captain Syrup pulling him down the Poltergust 9000's hose.

Alboort jumped up, spreading his arms out wide. "Maple, we did it."

Captain Syrup ran towards Alboort, her arms outstretched as well. As the two came together, though, she phased straight through his body.

Alboort paused, blushing. "I just I should have expected that. He turned around to see that Captain Syrup had caught King Boo's crown just before it fell off of the sighed. "I should have expected that, too."

"Well, it certainly is quite a treasure you have to admit." Captain Syrup brushed off the crown as she approached Alboort. "I mean, did you honestly think I was going to let this fall?"

Before Alboort could answer, more ghostly laughing could be heard. Two Boos floated up onto the roof. One had definite eyelashes, while the other had what looked like a tuft of hair dramatically falling over one eye.

"'Allo! It is I, Boo La La!" announced the feminine Boo.

"Wherefore am I, Boomeo!" the other Boo cried.

Captain Syrup raised the nozzle of the Poltergust 9000 up, but Alboort quickly raised his hands. "Maple, wait. King Boo's already gone, and I don't think these guys will hurt us."

Captain Syrup placed a hand on her hip. "And what makes you thi-"

"Good Merbootio, is that you?" Boomeo flew towards Alboort.

"'Allo, mon frere!" Boo La La also flew toward the bespectacled Boo.

"Hey, back off, you two." Alboort jumped out of the way, leaving the two other Boos to collide in an embrace. "Okay, story made short, Maple, Boomeo feels the need to call me Merbootio and that we are twin brother, and Boo La La says she's my older sister, but she calls me Alboort. They were the only two Boos, besides me, to live in the mansion before the invasion of King Boo." He sighed. "I'm just glad that you guys haven't changed, though."  
"Alas, good Bermootio, I must digress that we served King Boo for a while, but it was solely because we feared that it way the only way to stay here at home. Gameboo and Gameboo advanced might have been able to get a job at some Microgames company, and Turbo has wandered off, calling himself the Spooky Speedster, but we must live here."

"Boomeo eez right, Alboort." Boo La La frowned. "We had no idea where you went." She winked. "But it is nice to see you have found yourself a nice lady friend."

"Oh, whoa! Hold on a minute!" Alboort and Captain Syrup shouted. "We're not like that!"

"What's going on up here?" A small ghost girl with blond hair and large, green eyes floated through the roof, rubbing one of her eyes. "Turning on the lights? Explosions? Shouting? How is anyone supposed to get any sleep around here?" She pointed to the horizon. "I mean, the sun is already coming up."

"What!" Alboort turned around to see the first inklings of sunlight appearing over the distant land. "Good grief, Maple, we need to get out of here!" He turned to the other two Boos. "Okay, Boomeo, how about you read Sue Pea a bedtime story?"

"It would be a wonderful affair!" Boomeo flew towards the young girl. "Come along, and ask me for any story you want, young one."

"Oh, and Boo La La," Alboort turned to the female Boo, "Melody and Shivers are actually getting together."  
"Oh, Boo La La! Tres magnifique." She flipped backwards and down into the house.

"Let's get out of here!" Alboort flew over to the edge and jumped off.

"Don't need to tell me twice." Captain Syrup sped over to the side, tucking the Poltergust 9000 away as she ran. She quickly leaped off of the edge and landed next to the Boo just as the mansion disappeared.

Alboort wiped his brow and pulled out his Theiftech. "Waluigi, can you hear me?"

"Yeah, I hear ya." Waluigi smirked. "So what kind of party you guys having? We heard all the ruckus all the way over here."

"Ha-ha." Alboort furrowed his row. "You have Luigi?"

"Got him right here." Waluigi held up the portrait in front of the screen.

"Good." Alboort gave a swift nod. "Seeing how the good doctor probably would go nuts, if he met me, how about you drop him off and make your way back to the hideout?"

"Fine." Waluigi groaned as he looked back at the green forcefields. "I might as well send Ashley back now, though. I don't think she can handle this mess right now." A thunderous crash of exploding stone echoed behind him. "Then again, nevermind."

Professor E. Gadd took Luigi from Waluigi almost as soon as the thief entered the door.  
Oh my, Luigi, it certainly seems as though you've gotten yourself into a pickle this time."

"Yeah. I know." Luigi groaned. "I don't even know what happened. One moment, I was minding my own business, the next, I was stuck in King Boo's clutches." He took hold of his hat. "Oh, I can only imagine what sort of trouble Princess Daisy is in right now."

"Princess Daisy?" Waluigi's eyes lit up. "Well, sorry, sucker, but I need to get going. Got a lot of important stuff to do."

"Oh, don't worry," E. Gadd chuckled. "The Ghost Portraificationizer works in reverse. It will hardly take a minute to."

"Sorry. Really need to go now!" Waluigi grabbed Ashley by the hand and ran out the door.

Okay, bit of fun trivia. In this entire Luigi's Mansion-based level, every Portrait Ghost was mentioned or alluded to except one. Do you know who it is?

Anyways, I should be getting on the ball with the next level fun commentary and original character to be gone over. Stay tuned.

Please, enjoy and review.


	19. Chapter 3 Part 0

Chapter 3 Part 0: Getting Swamped

"Waluigi! Slow down!" Captain Syrup gripped tightly onto her seat as the van blasted down the a dirt road. "Who the heck is this Princess Daisy, anyways?"

Only paying attention to his driving, Waluigi only murmured to himself, furrowing his brow.

"Alboort!" Captain Syrup turned to the Boo. "Why is Waluigi acting like a complete and total lunatic?"

"I wouldn't mind knowing who Princess Daisy is, either." Ashley was sitting quietly, despite the insane rocking of the vehicle the group was sitting in.

"Well, I'm having a bit of trouble just staying in this vehicle." Alboort was swerving in the air. "Curse subconscious intangibility!" He pushed his glasses up. "Anyways, I suppose it wouldn't hurt anything to tell you guys." He flipped his laptop open, placed it on the ground, and jumped into it. As he appeared on the screen, he cleared his throat. "Anyways, Princess Daisy is a close friend of Princess Peach's, along with Mario and Luigi."

"That doesn't make any sense." Captain Syrup picked up the computer and glared at the screen. "Waluigi couldn't have cared less about saving Mario or Luigi, even when that was our objective. Why would he care about saving one of their friends?"

"Daisy?" Star-Krossed looked up from his curled up cloak. "Princess Daisy?"

"Oh, look, he's awake." Alboort sighed. "Anyways, yes, you should know who Princess Daisy is. You were the one who hired us to save Mario and his friends." he looked around the screen, until he pulled open a folder. He pulled out a large picture of a woman with brown hair and wearing a yellow dress. He held it up to the screen. "Here we go, Princess Daisy."

"Princess Daisy?" Star-Krossed's eyes grew wide as he stared at the screen. "Grandmother!"

"What!" Captain Syrup and Ashley turned to stare at the cosmic being.

"Princess Daisy... is your grandmother?" Alboort pulled the picture down from the screen and rubbed his chin. "Well, Waluigi and Daisy do have a history. They did begin showing up with the rest of the gang around the same time. They seem to get along all right, too. In fact, the only thing they seem to disagree on, most of the time, is Luigi. Daisy likes him, Waluigi doesn't."

"So, they like each other?" Ashley took the computer and watched the digitized ghost.

"Well, yeah, kind of, I suppose." Alboort rubbed the back of his head.

Captain Syrup stole the laptop back. "Wait! You mean they 'like' like each other?"

"There... have been rumors... of Waluigi... maybe... having a teensy sort of... crush on Daisy." Alboort held his hands over his head. "But I assure you that I haven't heard anything about... immediate reciprocation in feelings." He swallowed heavily. "Honest. I can't lie too well."

The witch took hold of the computer again, and while struggling with the pirate to take it, they both collided cheek-to-cheek and screamed, "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!"

Silence hung in the air, besides the sounds of the van going off road, for a solid moment.

"I'm really not good at lying, but if you really want to know anything, I'd suggest talking to Waluigi. He knows about his relationship with Daisy more than I do."

Suddenly, the van came to a stop, the sound of splattering mud and the darkening of windows being covered with the same substance indicated that they had stopped in a swamp of some sort.

The purple-clad man turned around in his chair and grinned. "Shadow Siren Swamp. This is the place, right?"

"Yes, grandfather. That's right." Star-Krossed's massive hand loomed out of his cloak. "We must hurry and save Daisy."

Waluigi pointed at Star-Krossed. "Weren't you just sulking in the corner a minute ago?" He shrugged. "Oh well, when you're right, you're right" He tipped his cap forward to cover his eyes and saluted. "See ya later, Alboort. Doing recon now."

"Ah! But Waluigi!" Alboort swiftly pulled himself out of his computer, but Waluigi was already gone. Laughing nervously, he turned to the rest of the group. "So, who wants to find a hideout?"

Okay, another chapter, another victim to save, and more character development!

Oh, let's not forget that there are new characters this chapter, and Team Waluigi will actually be getting two new members this go around.

Anyways, answer to Trivia was the Whirlindas! I didn't talk about the dizzy dancing duo at all. I just didn't think about them, for some reason. What do you think of the idea of potentially adding Boo La La and Boomeo as characters that might affect the future, though.

Oh, and did anyone get my reference joke in the last chapter. It was stupid, but I thought it was funny.

Please, enjoy and review.


	20. Chapter 3 Part 1

Oh man. I've been offline for so long. I guess that's what happens when your computer dies. That's right. R.I.P. Dead. Now, I'm working off of an old dinosaur to do this work, so let's hope things keep moving.

Chapter 3.1: The Swamp Tour

As Waluigi jumped out of the van, he paused and jumped on top of the vehicle to avoid hitting the muddy ground. He held his chin and looked down at the wallow he had parked in. "Maybe jumping straight into the swamp wasn't the greatest idea in the world."

The Thieftech vibrated at the thin man's waist until he answered it. "What on Earth do you think you're doing? I know Princess Daisy means a lot to you, but you can't just go running off like that."

"Don't worry, Alboort." Waluigi snickered as he puffed out his chest. "There's nothing out here that could possibly hurt me! I am still number one, after all."

"I wouldn't say it's time for you to boast yet." Alboort tapped several keys on his computer. "I have almost no information on who we're going after, and all Star-Krossed will tell me is that this guy is known as Blackeyes, Lord of Fear."

"Lord of Fear, huh?" Waluigi looked around. "More like Lord of Muck? Who wants to live in a swamp?"

"I'm not quite sure, but this would be a good place to resupply. Twilight Town isn't too far, and it's a little, quaint town."

"Yeah. Yeah. Quaint town. We can stop in for tea and crumpets later." Waluigi furrowed his brow. "Right now, though, it sounds like we need some serious recon, and unless you think Captain Syrup or Ashley is willing to trudge through the mud, I'm the one to take care of these things."

"I can't really argue with that." Alboort adjusted his glasses. "To be blunt, I want you to start with the Shadow Siren Sisters. Though I doubt that they're actually involved, they do have a history of potentially destroying the world. I'll set a marker up where you can find them."

"Alright." Waluigi clicked to button to take Alboort off of the screen the placed the device over his eye. He looked around until he found his target marker. He quickly flipped the device shut and pocketed it. With a quick spring from the van, he made his way in the target direction.

The purple-clad thief made a point to avoid putting so much as a toe in the murk of the swamp, mostly be landing on fallen trees and rocks. It wasn't so much that he anticipated something dangerous to jump out of the mud and water as much as he didn't want to ruin his shoes. They were Italian, after all.

Shortly, a small cottage appeared before Waluigi. Well, it was an attempt at a cottage, but with the given ambience and the fact that it stood alone, it looked a lot more like a witch's hovel.

"Okay, I think this is it." Waluigi looked around. "Now that I think about it, though, what the heck is a Shadow Siren, anyways?"

The door slowly creaked open, and three purple shapes exited the hovel. The three entities were easily distinguishable from each other by their size and the color of their hats: blue, yellow, and red.

"Come now, sisters." The one with the blue hat wheezed. "We should probably get to town before it grows too late."

"Hmm. It is getting to be late, isn't it?" Waluigi pulled his Thieftech out. "Oh well. I should probably get this picture before they run off." With a quick flick of his wrist, the snapshot was taken.

Alboort soon appeared on the screen. "Wow. Nice shot, actually getting all three of them at once." He clicked on his mouse and stared at his computer screen for a moment. "Anyways, the Shadow Sirens are most famous for their attempt at trying to revive the Shadow Queen, who was sealed behind the Thousand Year Door." He tapped several keys. "It seems that they're little more than a group of shadows that can take a third-dimensional form. It could be inferred that they used to be found in more copious populations."

Waluigi took hold of his chin. "Are they any sort of problem?"

Alboort shook his head. "Not likely. At one point, I'd have given them a strong maybe, but even if Mario hadn't helped them see the error of their ways, their teamwork is pretty weak. Beldam, the oldest one, is the brains of the operation, if she wasn't so forgetful. Marilyn, the larger one, would be the brawn, if she knew how to use it. And Vivian would be the looks, if she didn't have less than a penny's worth of self-confidence. Sure, Mario helped her out with that, but I honestly don't think she's ready to be out on her own."

"I didn't think so, either." Waluigi tapped his chin ever so intently. "However, I did overhear the old hag saying they didn't want to be out too late."

"That's a little hard to judge around here, but I suppose there is still a sunrise and a sunset in these parts." Alboort rubbed his head. "Doopliss might be up to his old tricks, though. Make your way to the Creepy Steeple. It shouldn't be hard to miss. It's the tallest building around that sits on top of a hill."

"Sounds spooky enough." Waluigi put the Thieftech away and rushed through the swamp. The trees thinned and thickened and thinned again as he continued until he reached the foot of a hill. He stepped back behind the trees as he stared at an ancient church. "Okay, now that is a creepy steeple." He pulled out his Thieftech and placed it over his eye. "Well, what Alboort wants, Alboort gets." He quickly took a picture of the decrepit building, flinching as though that would be enough to knock it over.

"Yeah, that's the Creepy Steeple, all right." Alboort paused. He waited a moment, before pushing his glasses up. "Wait a minute! Something doesn't feel right."

"No offense, but it's a haunted steeple." Waluigi gestured at the large structure. "It's not supposed to feel right."

"I know it's a haunted steeple, but that's the problem." Alboort swallowed cautiously. "Listen. Do you hear any Boos? You don't. There's no screaming, no laughing. It's too quiet."

"Hey, I guess you're right." Waluigi leaned from his forest hideaway to get a closer look at the Creepy Steeple. "Just nothing." He soon twisted quickly back to his spot as he heard rustling in the bushes.

A stone creature ran out of the undergrowth. It only stood about two feet tall, but the spikes on its back matched the length. However, it wasn't charging at Luigi, but humorously waddling its way past him.

Waluigi placed his hands on his hips. "What in the world do you is wrong with that gu-"

"Shokora Beam!"

Suddenly, a hot pink beam shot past the tree Waluigi was standing behind and hit the stone creature. The creature shouted as it was compacted into a smaller, light brown form. It took Waluigi a moment to realize that what had once been a walking rock was now a piece of caramel.

Another figure flashed past the thief and towards the piece of caramel. Almost reflexively, Waluigi raised his Thieftech up again and took a picture of the strange predator. "Alboort! What is that thing?"

As Alboort appeared on the sreen, he jumped in his seat. "Waluigi, what happened?" He stared at the picture on the screen. "I really don't know, Waluigi. It looks like a girl to me." He crossed his arms and smirked.

"Huh?" Waluigi hadn't even taken the time to look at what he was taking a picture of. There, in the clearing, stood a strange figure. It looked somewhat like a girl, but her skin was black as pitch. A long pair of rabbit ears hung out of her blond hair and framed her pink eyes. Her long skirt made it hard to tell whether she had legs or not, but the dainty little gloves she wore deposited the once-stone caramel into her mouth.

"I don't know about a girl." Waluigi frowned at the screen. "She looks more like one of those Shadow Sirens."

"No, there's some significant differences." Alboort leaned back in his chair. "For one thing, she has eyes. Shadow Sirens don't have visible eyes. And Shadow Sirens don't wear clothes, aside from their hats. She also has slightly different… contours, shall we say."

"Yeah? Well, I don't care what she is! She just turned a rock thing into candy and ate it!"

"What?" Alboort's glasses nearly fell off of his face. "You better get back to base, Waluigi. I wasn't anticipating anything that dangerous to be out there."

"Don't need to tell me that twice!" Waluigi quickly snapped the Thieftech shut and pocketed it. As he made to run, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He was about to shout at whoever was bothering him until he saw the offender and screamed.

"Hi, I'm Bonnie Getcha, but I'm also sometimes called Bunny Getcha." The strange girl twisted her torso like rubber and stretched so she was eye level with Waluigi. "So what do you want to be? Chocolate? Caramel? Peppermint?"

"What!" Waluigi took a step back.

"Oh, you're right." Bonnie held her hands over mouth apologetically. "You should be licorice. You look a lot like a licorice, and I haven't had licorice is such a long time."

Waluigi's eyes widened. "What are you talking about?"

"What candy you want to be, when I eat you, silly." Bonnie giggled. "Clefts don't know what candy is, so I don't bother asking them, but I always try to make my food happy."

"No way are you turning me into candy, sister!" Waluigi made to run off, but Bonnie had already stretched her way around him to cut him off.

"You don't want to be candy?" Bonnie was again staring Waluigi in the eyes, tapping her own cheek thoughtfully. "I suppose I could turn you into a cookie or a brownie or maybe even a pie! Or cake!" She licked her lips. "Oh, now cake would be good."

"Would you knock it off!" Waluigi pushed Bonnie aside, but he tripped on her currently serpentine body. He lifted up his head and spat out the dirt. "You're not going to eat me!"

"Not going to eat you!" Bonnie looked puzzled. "But you're food." She twisted her body, so she was face-to-face with Waluigi, like looking at him with her doe eyes was going to convince him to be her next snack. She soon froze. "Wait! Maybe you're not food." She closed her eyes and smiled. "Yes. You look just like that other one. Blackeyes will want to see you." She laughed as she hurried coiled around Waluigi like a cocoon, shrouding him in darkness as he screamed.

…

"Waluigi? Waluigi!" Alboort stared at his computer screen in horror. "Oh, come on, Waluigi! Don't do this to me. Just don't!" He swallowed as the screen remained quiet.

"What's going on!" Ashley and Captain Syrup asked as they leaned over Alboort's shoulders at the same time.

"I don't know." Alboort's mouth hung open as he gestured to the screen. "Waluigi was there one moment, and then-"

Gasping was heard on the other side as light flooded the screen again. "It's okay." Waluigi lifted the Thieftech up again. "I'm all right, but trust me, when I say that you do not want to travel like that."

"Oh, I trust you." Alboort sighed in relief, harmoniously with the two women beside him. "Where are you, anyways?"

"No idea." It appeared as though Waluigi were standing up on the other end. "But it looks like I'm in a cage in some sort of weird lab."

"I'd bet you're in Blackeyes' lab." Alboort nodded to himself. "Better get pictures of anything interesting that you see."

…

Waluigi nodded at his ghostly associate as he placed the Thieftech over his eye. After a brief moment of searching, he found a strange being. It had blue skin and wore what should have been formal wear, if it weren't for how torn the clothes were. A neat little top hat sat on his head. But the most distinguishing feature was his face. Sewn up scars seemed to piece it together whilst hollow black eyes stared into the distance. It was reflexive for Waluigi to take a picture.

"Well, I guess that's Blackeyes." Alboort cringed at the sight of the image. "He seems to be some sort of Twilight Towner. Only, he's a lot creepier than your normal Twilight Towner. A LOT creepier. He's especially so with those hollow eyes of his. Is it any wonder they call him Blackeyes? Most Twilight Towners have yellow eyes."

"Yeah. I get he's creepy." Waluigi gestured at the scarecrow-like being. "Any idea what he does?"

"Not the slightest." Alboort shrugged. "But something tells me that you're going to find out soon. Primarily, the fact that he's coming right towards you."

Waluigi quickly put the Thieftech away as he looked towards his captor.

"Ah, a fine specimen you are, indeed." Blackeyes nodded his head slowly. "Bonnie certainly made a good choice with you." He snickered. Surprisingly, he stood about a head taller than Waluigi. His long coat's torn edge scraped the floor as he walked over to a curtained cage. "Why, along with my other specimen, you'll make a wonderful set of dolls for my master." He pulled the curtain away from the cage, revealing his other victim.

"Daisy!" Waluigi took hold of the bars to his cage as he leaned his head out.

Princess Daisy rubbed her eyes as she looked for who called her. "Waluigi! What are you doing here?"

Waluigi coughed into his fist. "Trying to save you."

Daisy looked at the cage around her. Smirking, she crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "Well, you're certainly doing a great job of it."

"Ah! You two know each other? Delightful!" Blackeyes rubbed his hands together. "That will help make you look like such a splendid pair of dolls." He laughed in a shrieking manner as he went back to his workbench.

Mission complete?

Signed,

-Waluigi

…

Well, dang! It's a cliffhanger… At the start of a chapter… That's only halfway through the story. Good grief, though, doesn't it look like Waluigi really stepped in it this time?

Anyways, I should be able to update this more frequently now, so stay tuned.

Please, enjoy and review.


	21. Chapter 3 Part 2

I don't really have a good excuse for being on Hiatus for so long. I bet most people thought I'd given up writing. The only thing I can really say is that time got away from me, and I'm sorry. I should be working on all my stories now, but please by patient with me.

Chapter 3.2: Spooky Boopliss

Alboort rubbed his brow as he looked over the team. "Ugh, this would have been so much easier, when we were a team of eleven, like when we were facing the Golden Emperor." He ran his hand down his face as he moaned. "Now we're only a team of six, and Waluigi is captured again."

"Hey, don't worry so much." Captain Syrup grinned. "I'm sure Waluigi is fine. You just talked to him only a few minutes ago, and he was perfectly fine."

"Yes, but for how long?" Alboort swallowed. "I have no idea what Blackeyes is planning, and there are just too many things that just seem weird."

"Saving Waluigi is not the concern." Star-Krossed looked up from the back of the van. "Daisy is who we came to save."

"Shut up, future boy!" Ashley rolled her eyes. "We'll be saving Waluigi, then we'll see about maybe saving this Princess Daisy."

"I'm telling you, Grandfather Waluigi will be fine." Star-Krossed clenched his shadowy fist. "We have to save Grandmother Daisy!"

Captain Syrup and Ashley both growled and glared at the extraterrestrial being.

Red jumped behind Alboort. "This isn't good. Everyone's getting really scary."

Alboort swallowed calmly and adjusted his glasses. "Well, we probably won't get too far in rescuing Daisy without either rescuing Waluigi first or at the same time."

Star-Krossed sighed in somber aggravation. "So it should be." He sat back, his hand receding into his cloak. "Then you must go into this endeavor alone... I have much thinking to do."

Alboort sighed and turned off the lights. He pulled down his projector screen and clicked to bring up the picture of the Creepy Steeple. "Now, the first thing that really bothers me is Creepy Steeple. As I discussed with Waluigi earlier, there don't appear to be any Boos around here, and Waluigi was captured by that weird thing, before we could really talk about how an even darker resident who is famous for haunting the grounds."

"That is weird." Ashley nodded. "Not much of a haunted church, if there aren't any ghosts. Rather lame, actually."

"Y-yeah. L-lame." Red nodded nervously.

"Well, you won't have to worry about having to deal with the lame steeple, then, as I'll be going to explore it." Alboort nodded smartly. "I'm already dead, so I don't have to worry, but I don't want anyone else going anywhere near the Creepy Steeple until we can somehow get rid of that... thing that kidnapped Waluigi."

"That sounds fair enough." Captain Syrup crossed her legs and leaned back. "Anything you want us to do, then?"

"Interesting that you should ask." Alboort clicked the remote for his projector, bringing up the picture of the Shadow Sirens. "I don't think they're quite the same as Boos, but I want you to see about talking with these sisters. They might be a handful, but if I can't get any information from the tower, then these three must know at least rumors about Blackeyes."

"Don't worrying about it, Al." Syrup winked. "I'm sure I have more than enough equipment for that." She chuckled. "Don't suppse they have any treasure on them, do they?"

Alboort frowned slightly. "Not likely. I don't know if you've noticed, but this isn't a very prosperous area."

The purple-clad pirate shrugged. "And what should happen if I don't get any treasure or gossip, then?"

"Oh, I'm sure you'll get gossip." Alboort frowned at looked at the projector. "But I suppose you're right. If I can't get all the information I need for a plan of attack and rescue, then I'll see about contacting Waluigi. Maybe he can find out some more from the source itself."

"If it's too risky for Waluigi... Red could always go." Ashley smirked.

Red jumped in shock. "A-Ashley! P-p-please! N-no!"

Alboort cleared his throat. "I already said that I don't want any of you near that place, until we can be sure it's safe! Besides, Waluigi is already inside." He turned to the van door and drifted tiowards it. "Maple, if you're ready, I'm headed out now."

The pirate nodded and took her place at the computer. She winked after the Boo. "You be careful now. Not even ghosts are invincible."

...

Alboort sighed to himself after having ducked between trees to avoid Clefts and Crazee Dayzees. He looked up past the iron fence to the tall church high above. "I think Boomeo would have enjoyed seeing this place." He took a deep breath as he looked around. "I could have sworn it should have been more ghostly, though."

After admiring the landscape, the Boo pulled his ThiefTech out and opened it. "Okay, Syrup. I'm just checking in to tell you that I made it to Creepy Steeple without any trouble. It's lucky that none of the local creatures seem to be guarding this place."

"None except for whatever kidnapped Waluigi." Syrup pouted. "Speaking of which, are you sure you're safe from whatever it was."

"Why did you have to ask that?" Alboort swallowed as he looked around cautiously as though the strange creature were standing over his shoulder. He wiped his brow, when he found himself alone. "Whatever it was, it doesn't seem to be here now."

"Speaking of there, what do you intend to do there?" Captain folded her arms and raised an eyebrow. "Do you think you'll be able to find some Boos who can fill you in on what's going on?"

Shaking his head somberly, Alboort pushed his glasses up. "That'd be nice, but I'm actually looking for a guy called Doopliss. He took up residence in this place a few years back, and if he's still around, he'll probably know everything that's been going on in Creepy Steeple, if not the whole swamp."

"Now that sounds like a plan." Captain Syrup winked. "At least we know your brain is still working." She tapped several keys, and opened both her eyes. "Now hold on. It doesn't seem as though there are any locks, but there is definitely something weird going on here..." She took hold of her chin. "It's almost as though someone's installed new technology in that place that shouldn't be there."

Alboort's white complexion paled even further. "Y-you don't think that Blackeyes might have made his lab in the basement of this place, do you?"

"I don't know a lot about ghosts." Syrup flipped her red hair. "I'm more of a machine kind of gal." She stared at the screen a moment, but she shook her head. "It might be lab equipment, but it looks more like someone wired in some lightbulbs or something."

"How strange." Alboort tapped his chin. "Well, I... I guess I'll head on in, before I talk myself out of it."

"I'll be here, in case of emergencies." Captain Syrup leaned back in her chair. "Just don't get too wild."

Alboort nodded, before shutting his ThiefTech and putting it away. He floated past the open gate and up to the church. He opened the doors slowly. He floated in and looked around. "N-no cobwebs." He frowned and shuddered. In most places, that would be comforting, but it wasn't natural for an abandoned building like this.

The ghost stopped shortly after enterring. It was much lighter than he would have thought. Unfortunately, it wasn't lightbulbs that lit up the room.

"A laser grid." Alboort cringed as he looked at the beams of concentrated light darting around the room. "This is really more Waluigi's thing, dodging past these, but I guess it can't be helped." He drifted towards the first row of lights. He adjusted his glasses to make sure he was seeing what he was seeing.

"Whoever set these but really did not want anyone in. However, it shouldn't be TOO hard to get through." He tugged nervously on his bowtie until he found a space large enough for him to enter. He passed through, just avoiding getting burned. If he were alive, he'd have been dripping with sweat.

The laser grid was also a lot less dense than he had expected. The first floor seemed to be intended for taller intruders than a Boo. The lasers did begin to angle slightly, but the grid ultimately wasn't anything that fancy.

He soon arrived at the first flight of stairs and floated up. With the railing, the first horizontal lasers presented themselves. They were low enough to jump over, but there were horizontal lasers not too far above his head as well.

"Well, that's no so bad." Alboort rubbed the side of his head. "Though I do hope that I can actually jump that high. It's been a while." He backed up a few invisible paces and sped forward. He jumped up and drifted forward between the two lasers. He jumped and floated through several more laser hurdles, finding himself a little more at ease, until he came across a large gap in the floor much to wide for him to glide across.

"Oh... wonderful!" The Boo around, hoping there was at least some extension of floor that could get him closer. He didn't see any extended rafters or ledges that could form a bridge. He did, however, see a pillar. "Now that should work quite nicely." He floated over to the pillar and placed a bomb at the base. He quickly drifted away, before detonating the explosive. The debased pillar tilted dangerously, before falling across the gap.

The ghost promptly crossed the newly made bridge and up the second flight of stairs. "Now, if I'm not mistaken, the stairs to the tower... should be... right... down... Of course." He faltered as he stared down a long highway of lasers with several gaps in the floor as well. "I thought this was too easy."

He sighed and stared up at the ceiling. "I'd have liked to have gone through the circuits, but those lasers would fry me, if I so much as tried." He pushed his glasses up. "Well, I guess there's no way around it."

The Boo floated forward, bobbing and weaving between the laser grids. He jumped when he needed to, but he took care not to go through the lasers, when he was too high. He had several close calls, swallowing as he could feel the heat of one laser almost skim his head. When he approached the first pillar, he placed a bomb on it and allowed it to become his bridge. He crossed and dodged a few more lasers, including several moving lasers.

He wiped his brow as he approached the final pillar. "Oh, I thought that I was a goner there." He looked back at the two horizontal lasers that moved up and down with a horizontal laser that moved forward and backward as well as a vertial laser that moved left and right. "I am definitely not Waluigi."

He turned to the pillar and flinched. "Oh, come on. There's not enough room here! I'd get caught in the explosion, if I don't jump back before detonation!" He stared up the pillar and groaned. "Well, I certainly hope Waluigi appreciates what I do, when he hears about this." He applied the bomb and jumped back through the laser gauntlet, before the explosion. He jumped up to his handiwork and crossed. He turned back and wiped his brow. "Well, that went well enough." He turned back to the stairs. "I just hope Doopliss is in a good mood. I don't think I'd stand a chance in a fight right now."

Alboort drifted up the stairs carefully, watching for so much as a Swooper to attack. He shook his head as he waited patiently for the end. As he arrived at the top of the tower, he looked around. "Hello? Doopliss?"

A scrambling in the corner of the bedroom-like top of the tower announced that there was a presence there. A scrambling behind the bed made the hiding place pretty obvious. "Who's there! This is my place! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out!"

"Doopliss. Calm down." Alboort looked around at the mess, raising an eyebrow. "I-I don't want any trouble." He swallowed, hoping a battle wouldn't ensue. "I just came to talk."

"Just get out!" A creature that looked like a bedsheet ghost costume with shoes, a ribbon for a bowtie, and a party hat hopped up on the bed. He blinked a few times as he stared at his intruder, before flopping back on the bed. "Oh, thank heavens. It's just a Boo." His eyes widened. "Wait! A BOO! HERE!" He hopped off of the bed and ran towards Alboort. "A real Boo." He poked the Boo a few times.

The Boo shook his head and slapped the poking hand away. "Yes. I'm a real Boo!" He huffed slightly, but he stared at Doopliss with concern. "That's what worries me, though. Isn't this place supposed to be overrun with Boos."

Doopliss wiped his brow, before nodding. "Yes. There should be hundreds downstairs, but not since that Blackeyes character came around. I haven't been able to leave my tower, since he arrived."

"Blackeyes?" Alboort cringed as he stared at his conversation associate. "You mean Blackeyes is in Creepy Steeple?"

"I hope not. That's why I took the time to set up that security system downstairs. I don't think anyone besides a Boo could possibly get in here." Doopliss glared fiercely at the horizon. "But that Blackeyes guy... he came here several weeks ago, and the swamp hasn't been the same. They haven't been boring, which I like, but this type of excitement isn't fun either, which I don't like." His red eyes flashed slightly. "It was as though as soon as he came into the swamp, all the Boos fled. They left Creepy Steeple in a frenzy, and I laughed as they and the Swoopers swarmed out of the swamps. But it wasn't fun, when they didn't come back. The Twilight Towners haven't had the guts to leave their homes, since that guy got here."

"Do you know anything else about Blackeyes? What he looks like? What he does?" Alboort fished for clues.

The other ghost shook his head. "I wish I did. All he seems to do is scare everyone. The Clefts are apparently too stupid to leave, but I suppose Blackeyes hasn't done anything. I haven't seen him since he first came here, and I set up that security system, hoping I never would again. But I know he's somewhere near here." He glared down at the ground. "It's that strange shadow of his that I've seen running amuck down there. I just want both of them to leave. Leave! Leave! Leave! Leave! This place was mine, and they have no right to be here!"

"So that's it, then?" Alboort looked over the side of the tower as well. "You don't know anything."

"If you know how to get rid of him, I might be able to reward you," Doopliss grumbled. He turned sharply on the Boo. "If you don't, then get out of here! This is my hiding spot! Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! I don't need any more trouble with hiding someone else here!"

"All right. All right." Alboort held his hands up defensively. He turned and hopped off of the side of the tower, drifting slowly in the direction of the van. "Well, seems that whoever this Blackeyes is, he lives up to his name as lord of fear well enough."

Mission complete,

Signed,

-Alboort

...

All right. I realize that must have seemed like an odd chapter. Not exactly a classic Alboort mission. However, I thought it'd be fun to give him a taste of an agility mission, and as a technically dead member, he fit so well as the one to go in and deal with this particular mission as he had less risk with Bonnie Getcha lurking around.

I'm afraid I don't have much more commentary, so I decided I'd take time to discuss something interesting at the end of each chapter for some fun. This chapter, at the end of each sub-chapter, I'm going to talk about a Waluigi pairing. First up: the ever classic Awkward Date!

Now, the roots of WaluigixDaisy are quite obvious. Both characters became mainstream in Mario spinoffs at about the same time, are both associated with Luigi, and both have been described as skinny stars. Let's not forget that Waluigi is rumored to have a crush on Daisy and their team names seem more supportive than when Daisy and Luigi make a team.

I actually do think that this is a cute pairing and a lot of fun, but I don't neccessarily support it. Whereas I have seen it don't cutely, both of them are very strongheaded and stubborn characters. Whereas they could get along well as friends or as a dating couple, a marriage would never work out as they'd end up on each other's nerves.

Still, I would definitely like to see these two... Oops. No spoilers now! ;)

Until next time,

MasterofHearts1313


	22. Chapter 3 Part 3

ANother stupidly long hiatus. Well, let's hope I can get past it and work hard on a renewed writing vigor. I really hope you all are still enjoying the story.

Chapter 3.3: Fire and Ice... and Lightning, too!

Captain Syrup stepped out of the van and trotted across the stepping stones in the swamp. She pulled out her ThiefTech and hed it to her ear. "Okay, Aboort, let's be honest, I'm not really in this to save Daisy."

"Just consider her part of the set." Alboort pushed his glasses up. "It doesn't really matter how you feel about it anyways. Remember, we've got emotionally-scarred black hole whining that we save her."

"I guess that's true." Captain Syrup pouted slightly. "Besides, we do need to get Waluigi back."

"Yes. That is awfully important." Alboort nodded, despite looking into the pirate's ear. He rolled his eyes, before typing on his computer. "You know what you're supposed to do, right?"

"Find these Shadow Sirens or something like that, right?" The purple-clad pirate looked around. "Shouldn't they be living in town or something? Exactly how long of a walk is that?"

"Actually, they live out it the swamp. They really aren't much ones to socialize, much to Vivian's misfortune. You see, Beldum is really a bit of a grouch and doesn't really enjoy going into town except for errands, even after her renewal for life by Mario. Marilyn pretty much listens to whatever Beldum says and doesn't seem to care about compant, either. Vivian, on the other hand, has always wanted friends."

"Look, I'm not into sob stories. I don't care about their friends. I just want to know what will happen, if they don't want to cooperate." The captain pursed her lips.

"Which they probably won't." Alboort sighed. "Well, if they want a fight, remember that they can use lightning, fire, and ice magic. I know you can use all of those elements with the Poltergust 9000, but they might have numbers on you."

"I don't think so." Captain Syrup grinned. "I... picked up a few things from the last place."

"You picked up..." Alboort palmed his face with both hands. "The crown wasn't enough? What else did you steal?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just these three clockwork soldiers that weren't doing anything themselves."

"You took the... Maple! Are you nuts? That's just abour kidnapping in its finest form."

"Hey, I already said they weren't doing anything." Captain Syrup smirked. "Besides, I've fitted them out with their own settings for this... magic business. The pink one uses fire, the green one uses lightning, and the blue one uses ice."

"Now, you remember how those elements coincide, right?" Alboort clicked his mouse as he searched his computers files. "Fire melts ice, that's obvious, but ice will freeze lightning over, and lightning will blow up fire."

"I work with machines. I think I know how electricity works." Captain Syrup placed a hand on her hips, before winking. "Still, thanks for the tip."

"You're welcome." Alboort tapped several more keys on his computer. "I'll be uploading the coordinates of the Shadow Sirens' house. Be careful. We're already down a teammate."

"Don't worry about it." Syrup nodded as she closed her ThiefTech. She smirked as she switched it open over her eye. "Now, let's see... where is it? There it is." She pocketed the little device, before jumping through the swamp, doing her best to keep her clothes clean. She jumped between rocks and stumps. The mud wouldn't hurt her, but she was wearing silk, after all.

After a minute or two, she stopped and stared at the odd cottage in the midst of dark, moss-strewn branches of the trees. "Seems simple enough. " She opened her pack to make sure she had everything she needed. She closed her pack and walked to door, knocking on it rather forcefully.

Grumbling answered back as the door creaked open. "Who in the blazes dares to trespass on our property!" An old-looking purple creature in a blue-striped hat peered out, a much larger version of her with a yellow-striped hat looking over her as well. "What do you want?"

Captain Syrup leaned against the door. "Hey. New in town. I was hoping to get some information from the locals."

Beldum shook her head as she looked up at the woman. "Well, I don't know what you're looking for, but you're not finding it here."

"Wait, Beldum, is that a visitor?" Vivian opened the door wider. She smiled at the surprise guest. "Well, hello! We don't get many visitors out here."

"And we're not getting one now." Beldum struggled to pull the door shut. "This here is a snoop."

"Look, I just want to know if you know anything about this Blackeyes guy." Captain Syrup smiled impishly. "I heard that he's been ruining the local property values. Places have been selling real cheap. I was looking at the big place down the road. Seems to have lots of room."

Beldum was working harder to pull the door shut, gesturing to Marilyn to help her. "We don't want any of this."

Even Vivian was looking unnerved. "W-we-"

"We don't know anything!" Beldum was straining.

Captain Syrup shook her head as she looked down at her foor. She knew full well that it would take a lot more than the smaller two had to close a door by hand against a foot acting as a door stop. "Look, all I want is a little information. However, I'm not really interested in fighting, either, which is why I have a proposition. I've got a few friends with elemental powers. Let's say we send one fighter out at a time. Whoever is bested in each round is knocked out of the competition. If I win, you give me the little bit of information I need, and I'll be out of your hair. Beat me, and I'll just leave."

Beldum growled. "Fine. If it'll get you off of our property." Her nostrils flaired. "Just give us a moment to... plan our strategy."

"Very well." The pirate stepped out of the doorway and to the side of the house. She pulled the clockwork soldiers out of her bag one at a time and looked between them. "These Shadow Sirens probably think they're clever, but their strategy is pretty thin. I can tell they're going to send out that big one first. Think they can muscle thir way out of the competition." She pulled the clockwork key out of the pack and walked behind her soldiers. She palced it in the back of the blue soldier. "You've been the leading man, after all."

The blue soldier sprang to life, standing erect and holding his rifle properly. He turned and walked to the doorway. As predicted, Marilyn was his opponent. He lowered his gun as the siren's lightning sparked. A blue bullet hurtled from the soldier's gun, knocking the rotund shadow backwards into the house, a crash sounding from the inside.

"Cue number two!" Captain Syrup planted the key into the back of the pink soldier. She cranked the key quickly, bringing it to life as well. It marched behind its blue comrade.

"What the heck was that!" Beldum drifted to the front door to meet the pink soldier. "There's no way you could have just tossed Marilyn like that!" Her fingertips began to spark with blue. She was caught by the fireball from the pink soldier's gun, knocking her back as well. "Yah!" Her face was black as she fell back on her larger sister.

As Captain Syrup pulled the key on her green soldier, Vivian entered the doorway, holding her hands up defensively. "Please, don't shoot!" She pulled her hat down over her face as to hide.

The green clockwork soldier acted rather disorderly at this reaction. He turned to the other soldiers and shrugged, only for them to shrug back. He turned to Captain Syrup and shrugged. The pirate captain gestured with a sort of pushing toward the young girl.

The green soldier, not raelly wanting to hurt the innocent, poked the hat-covered head with the muzzle of his gun, wondering if it would instigate an attack on her part. He pulled back slightly as the youngest shadow siren sister flailed her arms, before walling backwards in the doorway.

Captain Syrup stepped into the house and to the blue-hatted sister. She picked the short creature up and stared her in the face. "Now, about Blackeyes."

"I don't consider that fight fair!" Beldum grimaced. "But if you must know about Blackeyes, he used to be a Twilight Towner. He must have lost too much fluff from his head, though, because he's a real lunatic. Left town years ago and only came back a few weeks ago. He set up shop in that big building down the road!" She strained against the grip she was stuck in. "I don't know what that psycho is up to. All I know is that he's been off of his rocker for years, and if you want to fight him, then you go do that. We'll have no part in that! I don't think he even has a weakness!"

"And that's all?" Captain Syrup frowned. "I should have expected." She placed the shadow down gently, before nodding. She flipped her ThiefTech out of her pocket and opened it. "We've hit another dead end. The most I could get is that this Blackeyes guy was a local here and isn't human."

"I was afraid of that." Alboort sighed at the news. "Well, it can't be helped. Get back here, and don't steal anything."

Captain Syrup pouted playfully. "Nothing?"

"Nothing!"

The pirate captain hung up and left the house as it was. She gestured for the soldiers to march. "Come on, boys. And don't rust yourselves." With the soldiers marching behind her, she made her way back to the van.

_Mission complete,_

_Signed,_

_-Captain Syrup_

...

Well, I admit it was another short chapter, but some of these missions are short. I thought this one worked better as a rock-paper-scissorts format than an actual battle. One, to keep Captain Syrup as the gimmick girl. Two, to add variety. Granted, in the actual game, it'd be more random, and you'd probably need to get two hits on each siren to knock her out, but one seemed easier to explain in a story.

Also, I am not calling Vivian a pansy or useless in battle or anything like that. She just seemed a sweet girl who still wouldn't want to fight, if she could avoid it. Plus, I thought it was cute and funny with how she was defeated.

Anyways, I guess now is the time for me to discuss the next Waluigi pairing: Star-shipping. If you can't guess, I mean Waluigi the sports star and Rosalina the Princess of the Stars. This is pretty much also a pairing that could easily be called Default-shipping. By that, I mean that this pairing pretty much only exists because Waluigi is the single man left out and Rosalina is the single woman. Granted, this would raise questions about women like Captain Syrup, Ashley, Vanessa, and Pauline, but I shouldn't gripe too much about that.

Again, it's a cute pairing, but I wouldn't say I support it. It's not bad... it just has no real immediate grounds support it, unless you count them both qualifying as heavyweights in Mario Kart for the Wii, but that's a stretch. There's also nothing to explain why Rosalina would leave the star nursery or that Waluigi would feel like living there.

It's cute, just more as one-shots than anything else.

Well, I better quit, before I make the author's note longer than the chapter. See you next time!


End file.
